Sinister Intentions
by marine-machine
Summary: [KIBBS] Sequel to A Dare, Or Something More Sinister? A trajedy rocks the team, causing the members to question their loyalties. Will Gibbs and Tony recover! Ducky and Kate visit Gibbs! Kate reveals a secret to Ducky!.....Ch20 NOW UP!YAY :
1. Chapter 1

**Sinister Intentions**

Rating: T

Disclaimer: I don't own them. I am merely taking the characters for a spin

AN: Thankyou to Kate for her ongoing help and support!

I started writing this shortly after finishing my first fic, before Frame-Up was shown on TV. The storyline is kind of similar in some respects, but follows a different path...

Mild slash

* * *

Andrew stumbled out of the back door of the bar. Clutching his stomach, he kneeled behind the heavy duty dumpster and threw up. Panting, he wiped his mouth and sat back as he tried to regain his breath. He moaned and rolled over, fighting the irresistible urge to throw up again. Taking a deep breath, he climbed to his feet and staggered into the brick wall. He focused his eyes at a point at the end of the side-street and slowly stumbled towards it. As he got to the start of the street, he smiled and regaining some of his equilibrium, he stumbled down the main street until he reached the park. Walking through the park at this time of the morning was always nice; it was still dark, but not dark enough that he couldn't see. He heard a noise behind him, but ignored it, probably some other drunk trying to get home. All of a sudden, he couldn't breathe, his hands went straight to his neck to find a rope there. He clawed at the rope, trying to loosen it, but to no success. He tried to get at his attacker, but they stood well out of his way. As the light began to fade, he wondered how his attacker had gotten at him so fast.

* * *

Kate stood leaning against Tony's desk, they were both watching one of the new agents making his way to his desk from the elevator. 

"I don't get it, what's so special about him?" Tony asked

"Tony, look at him. It's not hard to see why everybody is talking about him" Kate responded

Tony looked at Kate, "He looks like he's in love with himself, Kate. A pompous, arrogant, self-indulged prick"

"You been reading the thesaurus again, Tony?" Kate asked

"Yeah, got bored last night" he replied

"So, where was Smith?" she asked

"Isn't Smith a bit old for you, Tony?" McGee asked

"Got a problem with that, Probie?" Tony asked

McGee raised his eyebrows and shook his head, returning to his paperwork.

"You haven't told him yet?" Kate hissed at him

"No, keep your voice down, Katie. I don't want the whole office to know" Tony hissed back

"Tony, it's been eight months" Kate replied

"So?" Tony asked, "The kid is a homophobe"

"He is not" Kate responded

Tony glared at her, "You better not tell him"

Kate growled at him, "I wouldn't do that"

They glared at each other for a while, quickly forgetting what they were arguing about.

"So, how's Gibbs these days?" Tony asked

Kate gave him a confused expression, "Well, it's not like you don't see him everyday"

Tony leaned closer, whispering, "Yeah, but I don't see him every night as well". Kate slapped him over the back of his head. "I shoulda seen that coming" he commented

"Yeah, you should've" Gibbs commented as he walked passed and slapped him over the head, "And you shoulda seen that coming too"

"Ow! What was that for, boss?" Tony moaned, rubbing his head

"Whatever you did to make Kate do that" Gibbs replied, sitting down at his computer and taking a sip of his coffee

"Are you saying you don't need a reason to hit me or you don't know why Kate hit me?" Tony asked, clearly confused

Gibbs grinned, "Both, don't make me find out either"

Tony shook his head as his cell rang. He picked it up and frowned at the caller ID: withheld a private number. "DiNozzo?" His face went pale and his eyes widened in shock as he listened to the call.

Gibbs glanced at Tony as he ended the call, "Everything okay, DiNozzo?"

Tony put the cell on his desk and stared at it in a mixture of surprise, shock, hurt and horror. When Tony didn't answer, Gibbs exchanged worried glances with Kate, then asked him again if everything was okay. This time, Tony glanced up and over at Gibbs, before looking back at his desk and shaking his head.

"Tony?" Gibbs asked

"I think I need to go for a walk" Tony told them, weakly

"The only place you're gonna walk, looking like that, is to Ducky's office" Gibbs responded

Tony shook his head, "No, I don't want to" he said as he got to his feet and leaned against his desk. "I think I'm going to be sick" he told them as he rushed off in the direction of the toilets

Gibbs watched him leave and turned back to Kate with a concerned expression on his face, "What was that about?"

Kate shrugged and looked at him before glancing at Tony's cell which was still on the desk. "But we could find out"

Gibbs frowned, "Pull his phone records?"

Kate nodded. "Are you sure, can't we just ask him?" McGee asked

"I don't think he'll be telling us anything in this condition." Gibbs replied, thinking about it for a moment, "Do it". He turned back to his desk and without looking up, added, "And McGee? Be discrete"

"Ah, Gibbs, I can do it. I've finished my paperwork, McGee hasn't" Kate said

"He can finish it later, this is taking priority" Gibbs responded, still looking at his computer

Kate sighed and walking up to and behind his desk to whisper in his ear, "Tony hasn't told McGee about Smith"

Gibbs looked up at her, also whispering, "It's been eight months, Kate"

"I know, but he still hasn't told him" Kate replied

"And he hasn't figured it out yet?" Gibbs asked

"Well, it's not like it's been obvious, he's been discrete" Kate responded

"Kate, he openly checks out men" Gibbs hissed

"Yeah, but he still flirts with women and occasionally tells McGee about his weekend with some 'hot' woman" Kate responded, "I've heard him"

Gibbs huffed, "Well, it's about time McGee found out"

"It's not our decision, Gibbs" Kate responded

Gibbs growled and sat back in his chair, "McGee, Kate's gonna pull the phone records"

"Ah, boss, I need to take some leave" they heard Tony's voice as he walked to Gibbs' desk

"What for? And for how long?" Gibbs asked

"I'd rather not say at the moment" Tony replied

Gibbs cocked his head to the side, "What's going on Tony?"

Tony looked down, "I, ah,…nothing, boss"

"Tony?" Kate asked

Tony sighed, still keeping his eyes on the ground, "I just got a call…they told me…" he looked up at the ceiling, deliberately avoiding their eyes, not wanting them to see the emotion behind them, "They told me Drew is dead"

Kate gasped, putting her hand over her mouth and looked at Gibbs, who looked surprised. Gibbs cleared his throat, looking slightly uncomfortable "Uh, when?"

"Last night" Tony replied

"Who's Drew?" McGee asked from behind his desk

"A friend, Probie" Tony responded, watching Kate and Gibbs, daring them to say anything, "A good friend"

McGee nodded, "Did they know how he died?"

Tony huffed and nodded, "Yeah, they suspect it was a gay bashing"

"They don't know?" Gibbs asked, "Do they know who did it?"

Tony shook his head

Gibbs sighed and picked up his phone, "Get your gear, McGee you're driving" he said as he threw the keys at the younger agent

"Where are we going, boss?" McGee asked, catching the keys

Gibbs turned questioningly to Tony, who replied, "The park between O'Connor and Elton street"

"He's NCIS, until we're told otherwise; we're gonna help process the scene. Find who did this" Gibbs told them, straightening when he heard the person on the other end of the phone and waving them to go.

They walked off and into the elevator. McGee turned to Tony, "Gay bashing?"

Tony clenched his jaw, "Yeah, he was a gay friend"

McGee nodded and frowned, "There's only one gay guy called 'Drew' at NCIS. Andrew Smith" he stated and looked back at Tony questioningly

"What's your point, Probie?" Tony asked

"Tony, can I ask you something?" McGee asked, "And I don't want you to take offence, but if I'm right…"

Tony glared at McGee, causing the younger agent to get nervous

"Ah, um, I was just wondering if you are, um, if you're, ah, gay…?" McGee spluttered

"Would it matter if I was?" Tony asked

"Ah, no" McGee replied as the doors opened

As McGee moved to get out of the elevator, Tony grabbed the front of his shirt and slammed him into the side of the elevator, "Good, because if you tell anybody…"

"Tony!" Kate barked at him

"I swear I won't tell anybody, Tony, I promise, your secret is safe with me" McGee said quickly

Tony let him go and strode out of the elevator, leaving McGee looking like a fish. Kate held out her hand, "Come on, McGee, you're driving"

"I don't think I wanna be in the same car as him, Kate" McGee replied, straightening his shirt

Kate frowned, withdrawing her hand, "He's right, you are a homophobe"

"I am not. He just threw me against the wall, Kate. He said that?" McGee asked

"Yeah, it's why he didn't tell you earlier" Kate replied, walking out of the elevator

McGee ran to catch up with her, "How long have you known?"

Kate turned to him, "Eight months"

"Eight months!" He gasped as he stopped walking

Kate also stopped and looked back at him, "Yeah, he's been with Drew for eight months"

"But, the flirting, the weekends… with 'hot' women" McGee stuttered

"Were just to throw you off the scent" Kate responded

He sighed, "Well, it worked. I mean, I occasionally had doubts, some of the comments he made, and sometimes it seemed like he was checking out, ah, men's butts. And then there was … I can't believe he didn't tell me… eight months!" He said as he walked off

* * *

That's it for chapter 1!...Hope you liked it! Please review! 


	2. Chapter 2

**Sinister Intentions**

AN: Thankyou all for reviews!

Also, a big thankyou to Kate for her inspiration and fantastic work!

* * *

Gibbs got out of the car and turned to his agents, "Right, McGee, sketches, Tony, pictures, Kate, bag and tag everything"

Tony grabbed his bag and headed off to the marked tape, ducking under it. As he approached the body, he slowed and stopped. He took out the camera, but couldn't bring himself to begin taking the pictures. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Gibbs watching him closely. Sighing, he brought the camera to his face and started snapping away.

"Anthony DiNozzo?" a voice asked

Tony looked up, questioningly. A man in plain clothes approached him, "I saw a picture of you in the victim's wallet, I'm assuming you're Anthony DiNozzo, as listed as the victim's emergency contact"

"That's correct" Tony replied

The man smiled and put out his hand, "I'm Detective Cooper" Tony shook his hand, "What was your relationship with the deceased?"

Tony winced, then blushed, "Ah, we were partners"

Some men in police uniforms behind Cooper, began laughing. Cooper smirked, trying to hold back a laugh.

"You find this funny…" Gibbs walked up behind Tony "…Officer…?"

"I'm _Detective _Cooper" Copper responded indignantly

"That's what I thought, but then, surely a Detective would act with more professionalism" Gibbs said, coldly

"Right, and who are you?"

"Special Agent Gibbs, NCIS. I'm their boss"

The men behind Cooper began laughing again, causing Gibbs to glare at them, "Something funny? Because I sure as hell don't recall saying anything amusing" Gibbs snapped

"Uh, no, sir, ah, Agent Gibbs" the officers responded, stuttering under Gibbs' icy stare

"That's _Special_ Agent Gibbs, actually. Now scoot, get outta here, go keep the press at bay" Tony told them

The officers looked questioningly at Cooper, who nodded to them that they should do as he said. Cooper turned back to Tony and Gibbs, "Agen- Special Agent DiNozzo, there are a few more questions I wish for you to answer"

"Yeah, but he won't be answering them now" Gibbs responded, then sighed, looking at Tony, "He'll be answering _my_ questions later, you can sit in"

Tony swallowed nervously, "I'm a suspect, boss?"

"Until we prove otherwise" Gibbs replied

"He shouldn't be at the crime scene" Cooper stated

Gibbs nodded, "Yeah, didn't think of that earlier. Tony, you should go home"

"But, boss…" Tony argued

"It wasn't a question, Tony. Go home, you know the rules" Gibbs responded

"Fine" Tony snapped, shoving the camera at Gibbs and stalking off

* * *

Tony sat down on his couch, putting his feet up on his table and taking a long drink of his beer. He leaned his head on the back of the couch. It had taken him an hour to get home, the taxi driver was a foreigner and got lost, Tony ended up having to direct him back to his place. Thankfully the driver hadn't charged him for the trip. Gibbs was not aware he'd caught a taxi, Gibbs had a thing about taxis, which Tony could understand, but at times the man could be ridiculous.

He took another swig of his drink and thought about his relationship with Drew, he had been uncharacteristically nervous when he'd approached the man. Unsure of Smith's sexual orientation, Tony had beat around the bush for three weeks before finally asking him. Then it had been such a surprise when the man had returned his feelings for him. And the rest was history. They had gotten along like a house on fire, they agreed that whilst they were at work, they would act professionally, leaving all that other stuff for when they got home.

He closed his eyes, but opened them immediately when he saw Drew's lifeless body. He shuddered. Picking up the remote, he flicked through the channels on the TV, he needed something mindless to do, he didn't want to think about what had happened. He took another swig of his beer and stopped flicking the channels when he found a documentary on killer whales. Despite having something to occupy his mind, it kept floating back to the crime scene and his conversation on the phone, the voice telling him that Drew was dead. No longer living, not coming back. He turned up the volume on the TV and took another swig of beer.

* * *

Gibbs walked out of the elevator carrying a coffee in one hand, and a caff-Pow! in the other. As he walked into the lab, he looked around for Abby, finally seeing her sitting behind one of her computers.

"Whatcha got for me Abs?" he shouted over the music

She turned and smiled, turning down the music and waving her hand forwards and backwards, indicating she wanted the drink, "Oooh, caffeine"

Gibbs smiled and gave her the drink, then walking around to squint at the monitor over her shoulder.

"You should really wear your glasses, Gibbs. This…" she indicated to him squinting at the monitor, "is bad for your eyes"

Gibbs glared at her, causing the goth to smile, "You know that doesn't work on me" she said, keeping her eyes on him as she took a long drink from her caff-Pow!

"What makes you think I have glasses?" Gibbs asked, raising his eyebrow

Abby gave him a knowing smile but didn't say anything. Gibbs sipped at his coffee, turning his attention back to the monitor, "So, what have you got for me?"

Abby frowned slightly, "You only dropped off the evidence, like, five minutes ago" she whined. When she saw the blank look on his face, added, "Well, maybe, like, an hour. But, anyway, I've ran a tox-screen, your vic had a blood-alcohol level of 0.19"

Gibbs raised his eyebrows, "Well, it was assumed that he came out of the gay-bar around the corner, but…" he left the sentence hang, "What else?"

She huffed, "I found traces of rohypnol and ecstasy. Well, maybe not traces, a large amount of it"

"So, somebody was giving him spiked drinks, or at least, drinking with him and drugging them" Gibbs responded

"I wanna know what he was doing there in the first place. Tony joined me and Tim for dinner last night because Drew was away, apparently in New York" Abby mused

"New York?" Gibbs asked

"On assignment. Helping out the feds" Abby replied

Gibbs frowned and nodded, "Anything else?"

"Of course. That 'hair' you bagged and tagged is actually 'fur', likely to have come from a cat. A ginger one" Abby replied

"A cat? Tony doesn't own a cat, and neither does Andrew" Gibbs stated

"I know, Drew's actually allergic to them. I think it's a transfer from one of the guys who attacked him, like the guy had cat fur on him. So, one of your perps owns a ginger cat" Abby responded

"One of the guys?" Gibbs asked

Abby frowned, "Yeah. There has to be at least two of them, but I'm assuming that. I'm still looking for evidence on that, there are a few fibers to analyze and some blood. But they haven't left any prints; I think they were using gloves"

Gibbs nodded, "Right. Call me if you get anything else"

"Hang on, I'm not done with you yet" Abby stated, smiling. Gibbs turned around, frowning. "The foot-print you got from the mud, the shoe is size 9 and a half. And if you give me an hour, I can tell you what brand. I don't think it's a common type of shoe, there's almost no markings on the sole, very unusual, but it's not from wearing the shoes too much, that's just how the shoes are. Oh, and there was no prints on his wallet, you can take it; I'm sure Tony wants to keep it. Now, I'm done with you"

* * *

That's it for chapter 2!...Hope you liked it! Please review! 


	3. Chapter 3

**Sinister Intentions**

AN: Thankyou all for the reviews!

Also, a big thankyou to Kate for her inspiration and fantastic work!

* * *

Walking into autopsy, Gibbs found Ducky leaning over Drew's body, talking to it animatedly. Ducky looked up when he heard the 'swoosh' of the doors, with a concerned look on his face.

"Jethro, how's Anthony?" Ducky asked

"I'm not sure; I had to send him home." Gibbs replied

"Caitlyn told me how he reacted when he first heard the news. Do you really think it was a wise idea to send him home?"

"Well, I couldn't have him at the crime scene or following the case, as much as he would have liked to and he's already finished his paperwork from our last case, he would have been playing games or something"

"Sounds like you're making excuses to me" Ducky stated

"Maybe. But at least this way he'll be able to deal with his grief, instead of holding it back"

"And you think he'll deal with it better by being with himself? And quite apart from him seeing the body of his partner and photographing it, you almost accused him of taking part in it" Ducky accused

"I told him he was a suspect. Ducky, you know that that is normal; we always look at the people close to the victim, then spread out. I wasn't accusing him of doing it, I don't personally think he would be capable of that, but I can't just discount him without a proper reason. I want to find the person, or people who did this as much, if not more than most people, so we have to do this properly, by the books" Gibbs explained, "And just as importantly, I don't want us to be thrown of the case, so we have to stay impartial"

Ducky nodded in agreement, looking back to the body in-front of him. "Well, like I told you at the crime scene, he seems to have been strangled by a rope," he pointed to the red marks on the throat, "But that definitely wasn't the cause of death, it was merely a way of managing him. The perpetrators then proceeded to brutally beat him, causing internal bleeding and breaking five of his ribs, one of which punctured his left lung, but that wasn't the cause of death either. He was stabbed five times; here" he pointed to the chest area, "here, here, here and here. He was then raped repeatedly until he bled out. The poor man was conscious the entire time; I believe that is what the ecstasy was used for"

* * *

"Well, I always wondered why we never saw any of his girlfriends" McGee said

"McGee, we never saw his girlfriends even when he was dating them" Kate responded without looking up

"Yeah, I know" McGee sighed, "Am I the only person who doesn't know?"

"You were, yeah. I mean, the rest of the office is still clueless, but Gibbs, Ducky and Abby knew" Kate replied

"Why didn't anybody tell me?" McGee asked, pouting

Kate looked up at him, "Because it wasn't our place to. McGee, Tony did what he thought was best, I'm surprised it took him this long to say something, but… you have to let it go"

They looked up as the elevator dinged and Gibbs walked out, throwing his empty coffee cup in the bin as he walked. Moving into the centre of the bullpen, he looked between the two agents, and not directly asking either of them, asked what they had.

McGee looked at Kate then responded, "Ah, I looked through reports from the local police departments, but haven't found anything that fits this MO. Well, at least, apart from somebody who was drugged and beaten four months ago, but the perp was found and admitted to it, the perp died in prison three weeks ago"

"Anything else?" Gibbs asked

"No, not here anyway, I'm broadening the search now" McGee replied

Gibbs nodded and looked hopefully at Kate, who shook her head, "I'm looking through a list of people who may have something against him. There's quite a few people who are suspicious, a lot of them are still behind bars though, and Drew's still a relatively new agent. Although, two got released 8 weeks ago. Both are being watched closely"

"Did either of them make threats to him?" Gibbs asked

"No, but neither were brought into custody quietly. Drew and his partner, Agent Cook, were tracking some missing weapons from the naval base at Norfolk and followed three Petty Officers. When they tried to apprehend them, there was a shoot-out; one of the PO's sustained a fatal wound to his chest, dying almost instantly. The other PO's continued to resist arrest, they eventually ran out of shells and tried to make a run for it, but were caught and arrested. During the shoot-out, Drew was also hit, sustaining a bullet wound to his shoulder"

Gibbs nodded with a far-off look in his eyes, "Yeah, I remember. They blamed both Cook and Smith for their friend's death, Drew received hate-mail for around six months after they were imprisoned, Cook never reported hate-mail, but I'm sure he received it."

"Right. And that's all I have, I'm still looking into it" Kate told him

Gibbs let out a breath, "Okay, I want you both to continue running the searches, when you're finished, start on his recent case list. I'm gonna take Cooper and interrogate Tony"

"Cooper?" McGee asked

"Yeah, the cop from the crime scene. Call me if you get anything"

* * *

Cooper leaned against the wall as Gibbs knocked on the door. Cooper smirked, "He has a doorbell, you know"

"I like the old-fashioned way of doing things" Gibbs responded

"Been doing this a long time?" Cooper queried

"Yeah, too long" Gibbs responded

"Thinking of giving up?"

"Can't think of why I'd want to do that"

"Because the job is stressful and you always see the worst in people"

Gibbs looked at Cooper as he knocked again, then turned his attention back to the door, "Sounds like you're the one thinking of giving up"

"Yeah, I've seen my fair share of things, seen a lot of things people shouldn't have to see or deal with. And then when you lose one of you're people…either in the line of duty or them turning…" Cooper said

"Never lost one of my people in the line of duty, I'm not going to start now. As for one of my agents turning" Gibbs paused, "You're barking up the wrong tree"

"I'd say your agent has already turned" Cooper responded, smiling

Gibbs turned to the detective, with a blank look, but a cold look in his eyes, "And what exactly do you mean by that?"

"You know exactly what I mean by that. He bats for the other team, my friend; he was in a relationship with…"

"You got a problem with that?" Gibbs asked. Cooper shook his head, but continued to smirk. "And I'm not you're friend". Gibbs knocked again, louder.

"Why don't you try the doorbell? That's what it's there for" Cooper suggested

"I told you I like the old-fashioned way of doing things"

"So you said, but it doesn't appear to be working"

Cooper leaned over and pressed the doorbell, then repositioning himself leaning against the wall again. Gibbs growled but stood back. When they heard no movement from inside, Gibbs pulled out his cell and tried to ring Tony, but his cell wasn't working. "Damn thing! Why do they give me one of these when it doesn't bloody work?" Gibbs snapped, losing patience with his cell

Cooper took the offending object from his hands and studied it for a moment, pressing a few buttons. "You're outta battery" he stated, handing the cell back, "Wanna use mine?"

Gibbs shook his head, approached the door and began to bang on it with his fists, yelling for Tony to answer the damn door. Cooper pulled him back, causing the marine to glare at him. "Perhaps you and you're people shouldn't be handling this case, you're too close"

"Like hell we're letting it go" Gibbs stated.

They both stopped as they heard movement, Gibbs pulled out his gun, expecting the worst. The door opened a fraction, before being shut and the sound of a chain removed, then opened fully. Tony stood in the doorframe with a confused expression on his face. His hair was all messed up and his eyes were red.

"What the hell took you so long?" Gibbs asked, putting his gun away

"Was sleeping, boss" Tony slurred, "Didn't hear you"

"Well, are you gonna let us in? Or stand here on your doorstep?" Cooper asked

Tony thought about it for a second, yawning, "On my doorstep, don't really wanna let you in"

"Tony!" Gibbs snapped, glaring at him

Tony smiled goofily, "Well, I said I wasn't gonna let him in, didn't say anything about you. Coffee's in the kitchen…somewhere" Tony slurred, moving back from the door and staggering a bit

"Are you drunk, Mr. DiNozzo?" Cooper asked

Tony smiled a bit, pointing at Cooper, "Great observation skills! And it's _Special Agent_ DiNozzo, Mr. DiNozzo is my father, and I'm _almost_ sure you're not here to talk to him"

"Right" Cooper replied as he walked in

"Close the door behind you" Tony told him as he stumbled towards the kitchen, where Gibbs was making coffee. Cooper turned around and shut the door, making his way to the kitchen.

"DiNozzo, you're out of milk" Gibbs stated

"That's okay, boss. I wasn't planning on having coffee anyway" Tony muttered, opening the fridge and pulling out two beers

"No, I think you've had enough to drink" Gibbs told him as he tried to take away the alcohol.

Tony pulled the bottles out of his grasp, "Boss, with all due respect, I just lost my partner. I'm think that allows me to get drunk"

"You are drunk, Tony. You don't need anymore" Gibbs responded

"No, I don't need it, but I want it. Now, leave me alone" he said as he pushed past Gibbs with the bottles.

"Tell me, Agent Gibbs, do you treat all of your suspects like this?" Cooper asked

"Why don't we just cut to the chase, none of us wants to be here or doing this, so, out with the damn questions" Tony snapped, taking the cap of one of the bottles

"Tell us about the events of last night" Cooper asked

Tony sighed and took a big gulp of his beer, then set it down. "I left work at 1830, and Abby offered me…"

"Who's Abby?" Cooper interrupted

"Our lab tech" Gibbs responded. Cooper nodded, taking a few notes before waving Tony to continue

"Right. So, Abby asked me if I wanted to join her and McGee" Tony looked at Cooper, before explaining, "One of our other collegues. Ah, join them for dinner. I stayed there with them until around 2300; they gave me a lift back to my place. They didn't want me to catch a taxi…" Tony shot a look at Gibbs, who nodded

"Me either" Gibbs said. Cooper frowned

"Anyways, I got home, watched TV for a while. Then Kate rang …"

"Who's Kate? And what time was this?" Cooper asked

"She works with us. And it was around midnight" Tony replied, taking a sip of his drink

"Why did Kate ring you?" Gibbs asked, frowning, "I didn't hear the call"

"You wouldn't have, you were in the basement. She just wanted to whine about you for a while, something about being a bastard, but she got over it" Tony replied, "Uh, then it was about twelve thirty. I went back to the office and must have fallen asleep. I woke at about 0530 with the worst ache in my neck"

"You went back to the office at 1230? Why?" Cooper asked

"I was bored, so I finished off some paperwork. Kate had been nagging all day and I didn't get much done" Tony responded, taking another sip of his beer, "I was gonna go home, but didn't see much point. I grabbed my spare bag from my car with all my gear in it, had a shower and changed at work"

Gibbs turned to Cooper, "We have video cams at the office, we can back him up on this"

"Right. So, did you even notice that your, ah, partner, was missing?" Cooper asked, trying to keep a straight face

"He was supposed to be in New York, helping out the feds on one of their cases" Tony replied, taking another sip of the drink

"Have either of you had any threats lately, any indication that somebody would want to hurt him?" Gibbs asked

"Well, that's part of the job, isn't it? But, no, we haven't"

"Would he have told you if he had?" Cooper asked

"Definitely"

Gibbs nodded and looked at Cooper, "You got anything else?". Cooper shook his head. "Good. Tony, we should have this sorted out in no time" he held out Smith's wallet, "Abby said you might want this, it has no prints on it"

Tony gratefully took the wallet and looked through it as Gibbs and Cooper made their way to the door. Tony looked up, frowning, "Wait! Hang on a sec," Gibbs and Cooper stopped in front of the door, turning to Tony, "So, why did Abby take the rest of the photos?"

"What photos?" Gibbs asked

"The ones of Drew and me. There was at least three or four more" Tony replied, drinking deeply from the bottle

Gibbs turned to Cooper, "Any of your guys take them? As a joke or something?"

Cooper frowned and shook his head, "None of them came near it. The only photo we found in there hasn't moved"

"You only found one?" Tony asked. Cooper nodded. "Boss?" Tony asked

Gibbs frowned, concerned, "Tony, pack a bag, you're not staying here"

"I don't think that's necessary. I have a gun" Tony slurred

"Tony, this is not a debate! Go pack a bag, you are not staying here!" Gibbs snapped

"I don't want to leave! And I can take care of myself!" Tony responded, angrily

"If he really wanted to stay here, we could post somebody to stay guard or have a patrol" Cooper suggested

"Not gonna happen" Gibbs responded impatiently

"Yeah, well you don't have a choice in the matter! I'm staying put, if you think I'm in danger, then send a damn patrol! But, I am not leaving!" Tony snapped

Cooper looked back and forth between the two agents, like it was a tennis match. The tension in the air between them was almost malleable. "I think he was us to leave, Special Agent Gibbs"

"I don't care what you think, Detective, I am not leaving, not without him" Gibbs responded

"I don't think you have a choice" Cooper stated

Gibbs growled, "I am not leaving one of my men behind. He is coming with us"

"Would you two stop talking about me like I'm not here? Gibbs, I'm staying, and that's final, now leave before I throw you out!" Tony interrupted

"I'd love to see you try" Gibbs commented dryly

"Is there some kind of unresolved sexual issues going on here?" Cooper asked, waving his finger between them

Gibbs turned on him angrily, giving him a look that could kill, "Did somebody ask for your opinion! Because I don't remember asking for it! Now, if you want to continue working this case, keep your damn mouth shut! The only reason you are still working this case is because you were the first officer on the scene, and that was only to keep my boss happy!"

"Keeping me on the case? You don't even have jurisdiction for the case! Sure he was NCIS, but that doesn't mean you investigate it, that only makes you his employer! He was not navy! The only reason you are still on this case is… hell, I don't even know why you're still on this case!" Cooper replied

"No, you are not kicking us off this case! This is our investigation! You…!" Gibbs responded angrily

"Am kicking you off this case. I want all of the evidence and anything you have found. I'll send somebody by later. In the meantime, I'm going to organize some sort of protection for Mr. DiNozzo if he wishes to stay here" Cooper interrupted. Tony nodded his head in the affirmative. "Good, then it's all sorted" Cooper said as he walked out of the house, leaving Gibbs and Tony glaring at each other

* * *

That's it for chapter 3!...Hope you liked it! Please review! 


	4. Chapter 4

**Sinister Intentions**

AN: Sorry about the delay, I was busy with exams and such. And now I'm back, and better than ever - or at least I hope so... anyway, on with the story

Thankyou for all the reviews, I really appreciate them

Also, a huge thankyou to Kate for her fantastic work and inspiration

* * *

Kate sat back in her chair and stretched her neck, rolling her head over her shoulders. Spending this much time cramped in front of a computer was not doing her neck or back any good. Her chiropractor was not going to be a happy man when she came in for her next adjustment. She had already rebooked the appointment three times, the third time she cancelled, she had told them not to bother with another one, she would call them before she came in. That was two months ago. Squeezing the back of her neck, she turned her attention back to the screen in front of her and tried to focus. As she sighed, she felt or rather, heard her stomach grumble. Looking at the clock, she realised it was almost three o'clock and she hadn't eaten yet. Almost as if reading her thoughts, her stomach rumbled again, louder this time.

"Did I just hear thunder?" McGee asked as he walked in front of her desk, heading back from the toilets

Kate rolled her eyes, "Have you eaten yet, McGee?"

McGee sat down at his desk and thought for a second, frowning, "I don't think so"

"Want lunch?" Kate asked

"Sure" McGee responded

"So, you want the chicken and special fried noodles? The sweet and sour lamb? Or the beef with…whatever that is?" Gibbs asked, appearing out of nowhere, looking through a bag

"How'd you…? Never mind" McGee said, "Ah, the chicken and special fried rice"

Gibbs nodded handing over the small take-away container, "Right, rice, not noodles. And for you, sweetie?" he asked, turning to Kate

She gave a small smile, "Whatever you don't have"

"Who said one of these is for me?" Gibbs asked

Kate rolled her eyes, rubbing her neck "I'm not even going to answer that. Give me the sweet and sour lamb"

Gibbs looked at her with concern, handing over the container and walking around the back of her desk. He gently placed his hands on her shoulders and massaged them, making her gasp, "When was the last time you saw your massage guy?"

"Chiropractor, Gibbs. Too long" Kate responded

Gibbs grunted and continued to massage her shoulders for a while, "I'll have to continue this later" he said softly into her ear, before walking to his desk.

"I'm counting on it" Kate replied, smiling

A smile spread across his face as Gibbs sat down and opened the container of food.

"Boss, I found something" McGee called from his desk, sitting forward to see the screen. "A case in Baltimore, around three years ago. Same MO, exactly the same"

"Put it on the plasma, McGee" Gibbs said, standing up and walking to stand in front of the screen

McGee did as he was asked and stood up to join Gibbs and Kate. The plasma showed a picture of a body that resembled pictures they had taken earlier in the day. "The victim, Raymond Sceats, was followed and attacked after leaving a gay night-club in the early hours of the 24th of March, three years ago. He was attacked in an identical manner to our vic…" McGee narrated

"And the same time of year, the 24th of March is in a few days" Kate commented

"Yeah, …they never found the perp" McGee stated

Gibbs frowned, "Who was the investigating officer?"

"Detective Brooks and Wilkinson" McGee replied, after reading for a bit, "There wereseven other attacks like this one, similar MOs but they were all attributed to the same perp, all within two weeks, then the perp just disappeared"

"Okay, contact the detectives and get some more info, we may have to make a trip there later" Gibbs ordered him, "Oh and there will be an officer from the local PD coming to gather whatever we have. Don't let him get his hands on this; we can turn it over to them later"

McGee frowned, "Isn't that withholding evidence?"

"Let's just see what it turns up first. I'm gonna head down to see Ducky and Abs, see what I can get before we have to hand everything over" Gibbs stated

* * *

McGee grumbled and leaned back in his chair. Despite Tony constantly calling him 'Probie', he missed Tony, not in a weird way, but he had a way of lightening up everybody's moods. Gibbs had been in a bad mood ever since Cooper and one of his officers had turned up to confiscate their evidence. When Cooper had shown up, McGee had been on the phone to the detectives from Baltimore and had asked them to call back, but he was still waiting for the call two hours later. That annoyed him, he hated it when somebody said they'd call back and then didn't. He looked at Kate, who was in a sour mood, and wished he could cheer her up like Tony did. They seemed to have a special relationship, he'd noticed that although they'd continued their bantering, they'd stopped getting on each other's nerves, well, to some extent anyway.

McGee snapped out of his reverie when his phone rang, he smiled and picked it up. It was Detective Brooks. As he chatted to the detective on the other end of the phone, he felt his stomach drop, and his day got a hell of a lot worse.

Gibbs watched from behind his desk as McGee's mood turned sour. The young agent was still on the phone and didn't look too happy. Gibbs waited until he'd finished on the phone and gave the man a questioning look.

"Boss, that was the investigating detective from Baltimore" McGee stated

"And?" he asked impatiently

"Raymond Sceats was the third body they found. Detectives Brooks and Wilkinson were the first on the scene after the first body was called in. But a few days after the second body was found, Detective Brooks got appendicitis and had to take sick leave. The detective who filled in for him was Detective DiNozzo" McGee announced

* * *

That's it for chapter 4!...Hope you liked it! Please review! 


	5. Chapter 5

**Sinister Intentions**

AN: THankyou all for your reviews! I really appreciate them

Also a huge thankyou to Kate for her fantastic help and great work!

* * *

"Shit!" Gibbs exclaimed

McGee nodded, "Yeah, he worked three of the other crime scenes, but was reassigned shortly before the next victim."

"How many other ones were there?" Kate asked

"Well, the two before he got there, the four he worked, and then one other" McGee replied, "Seven altogether"

"You said the MO of Sceats was identical to Drew's, but Sceats was the third vic, why did it pick out him and not the two that preceded him, or the four afterwards?" Gibbs asked

"Because the MO changed slightly, but not enough for Baltimore PD to think it was another perp. The profile of this murder fits perfectly with the one from Sceats" McGee answered

Gibbs sighed, "What else did they tell you?"

"They're sending through the details of the case now. The time period between the third of fourth vic was two days, so, if we have the same guy or even a copycat…" McGee replied

"Two days…" Gibbs stated, thinking to himself, "Okay, we have two days"

"Two days for what?" a voice asked

They all turned in the direction of the voice to see Fornell walking into the bullpen.

"Agent Fornell, we didn't hear you come up" Kate stated, but it was more a question

"You wouldn't have, Agent Todd, I took the stairs. Need to lose this somehow" Fornell responded, gesturing to his stomach

Gibbs narrowed his eyes, "What are you doing here, Fornell?"

"Come to speak to you about one of your agents that is a suspect in a murder case, Agent Dinatzo" Fornell replied

"Wanna speak about this somewhere more private, Tobias?"

"Our usual meeting place?"

"Wouldn't have it any other way. After you"

Fornell led the way to the elevators with Gibbs following close behind. Fornell pressed the button to call the elevator and turned to Gibbs, "Your boy is in a lot of trouble, Gibbs"

"I don't see why, he didn't do anything" Gibbs replied with a blank look

"Can you prove that he wasn't involved?"

"Can you prove that he was?"

The door to the elevator opened and they walked in. "He was involved in a relationship with the victim and has no alibi for the time of death. I think that proves he was involved" Fornell replied as the doors closed

"Actually, he does have an alibi, we established that when we interrogated him" Gibbs responded, leaning across Fornell to flick the emergency stop switch

Fornell smiled and shook his head, "Actually you're wrong. When Detective Cooper took all of your evidence, he managed to get the security tape from last night as well. Agent Dinatzo left the building shortly before 0400 this morning and didn't come back until around 0530. That gives him plenty of time to do what he needed to do and get back, it's well within the time-frame you're ME gave for the time of death"

"So somebody screwed around with the time log, but he doesn't have a motive" Gibbs replied tersely

"You can't screw around with the time log. And I haven't found a motive yet, but I can assure you, I'll find one" Fornell responded

"Fornell, we both know he didn't do it, why are you pushing this? And what does the FBI have to do with this anyway?"

"Agent Smith was working with us on a case, but…"

"What case?"

"You know I can't tell you that, it's classified"

"It always is. What case? And why wasn't I notified?"

"Left out of the loop again, Agent Gibbs?"

Gibbs paced to the other side of the elevator and back, turning back to the other man "Dammit Fornell! Tell me what I need to know!"

"Gibbs, you're not in a position to demand anything. All I can say is that we didn't exactly get the desired result…"

"Fornell…!"

"…Gibbs, you have to leave this case alone. That's not coming from me, it's an order from above" Fornell stated, flicking the emergency switch, bringing the elevator back to life

Gibbs leaned in front of Fornell and flicked the switch again, shutting down the elevator, "You better keep me in the loop" Gibbs threatened

Fornell nodded, "I'll let you know what's going on, just stay well away from this case"

Gibbs studied the other man's eyes for a moment before flicking the switch again

* * *

Kate sat back in her chair and glanced at the elevator.

"Wonder what Fornell is doing here" McGee commented from behind his desk

"I'm sure Gibbs will find that out" Kate responded, turning her attention back to the screen in front of her

"Yeah." He commented, "So, is everything okay with you guys?"

"What do you mean, McGee?" Kate asked without looking up from the screen

McGee pouted, "I mean, lately, you guys have kinda been… I dunno, like" he paused for a moment, thinking, "You snap at each other a lot, and things seem a bit tense between the two of you. I dunno, maybe it's just me, because you guys can be really, ah, nice to each other as well"

"It's called a relationship, McGee!" Kate snapped

McGee nodded and quickly got back to his work, fumbling with the keys on his computer.

They heard the elevator ding and looked up to see Gibbs walk out and come back to the bullpen. He walked straight through the bullpen and went up the stairs to Mtac. They heard the door to the room open and then slam closed, followed by some shouting and people filing out of Mtac.

Kate looked back from the direction of the room and glanced at McGee before turning her attention back to her screen. She looked back up at McGee and saw the small smile on his face, "Find something funny, McGee?" she asked in a very Gibbs-like manner. She suppressed rolling her eyes as she thought that she was starting to act like him

The smile on the younger agents smile disappeared and he turned back to his work.

A minute or two later she heard her computer beep and tell her that she had a message. She pressed a few buttons to read the email, it was from McGee. She raised her eyebrow and read the message: _No, I was just thinking about Tony again_

Kate looked up at the man, "McGee, why aren't you talking to me?"

McGee didn't reply, but after some time, she heard her computer beep again, another message: _I didn't want to aggravate you; you seem to be in a bad mood since I mentioned your relationship with Gibbs…_

Kate growled, but decided to play along with his game, replying: _What do you want McGee, and why are you thinking of Tony again?_

McGee: _I was thinking that since he is…you know…well, he won't be chasing any of the women, so…you do the math_

Kate raised her eyebrows and replied: _You better not let Abby hear you say that_

McGee: _Nah, it won't happen, we're not on speaking terms_

Kate looked up at McGee, "I'm sorry, McGee"

The younger man looked up and met her eyes, shrugging, he replied, "We'll get over it, we always do. That's what happens in relationships"

"Or at least, in most relationships" Kate responded, turning to glare at the door to Mtac

"Wanna talk about it?" McGee asked

Kate shook her head, "No, we have work to do, we've gotta try to get Tony out of the mess"

* * *

Gibbs strode into Mtac and slammed the door behind him, making a few people inside the room jump. He looking around the room, quickly finding the man he was looking for. The director was video-conferencing with Commander Coleman from Norfolk. Taking a deep breath, he walked purposely to the Director, shouting at everybody to get out.

"Commander Coleman" he greeted Coleman on the screen

"Special Agent Gibbs" returned Coleman

"We'll finish this later Commander Coleman" the Director said. Coleman nodded and the connection was terminated. The Director watched as the last people filed out of the room before turning back to Gibbs, "What was that about?"

"Why wasn't I told about the case Agent Smith was working on with the FBI?" Gibbs asked

"You didn't need to know"

Gibbs clenched his jaw, trying to remain calm, "Why not, sir?"

"I don't need to explain myself to you, Agent Gibbs"

"No, you don't, but it would have been nice to know, especially when he turned up dead"

"Why are you interested in this case, Gibbs? You had no jurisdiction to investigate Agent Smith's death. And how were you informed of the case? We didn't contact you"

"The officer in charge contacted Special Agent DiNozzo and informed him of Agent Smith's death. Then he told us"

"Agents DiNozzo and Smith were close?" the Director asked, raising his eyebrows slightly

"Yes, sir. Sir, what was the case he was working with the FBI about?"

"I can't tell you that, Agent Gibbs. It was on a need-to-know basis…"

"And I don't need to know" Gibbs finished the sentence for him, sighing

* * *

THat's it for chapter 5!...Hope you liked it! Please review! tell me what you think 


	6. Chapter 6

**Sinister Intentions**

AN: Sorry about the long wait, didn;t realise it was so long since I last updated...

Thankyou for the reviews

Also, a huge thankyou to Kate for all her help

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"We've been reassigned" Gibbs stated as he walked into the bullpen, "The body has already been sent to Ducky and should be now in autopsy. We're to take over from Agent Cox's team and finish processing the scene". He walked behind his desk and picked out his gun from the draw and threw the keys at McGee, "Get your gear and be at the sedan in 5"

"So, what about Tony?" Kate asked from where she was still sitting behind her desk. Gibbs turned to face her and shrugged, sighing. "We're just gonna forget about him?"

"No, we're not. Processing the scene shouldn't take more than two people, so you are gonna stay here and look through the files that were sent to us from the Baltimore case. I want to know what to expect, just don't get caught doing it, we're not supposed to be working the case anymore. Also, if you can, try to find out where DiNozzo was at the time of the Baltimore murders" Gibbs told her as he walked out of the bullpen

Kate frowned, "You don't seriously think he did this, do you?"

Gibbs stopped and turned around, slightly exasperated "No, but it doesn't hurt to check"

"Gibbs! You have known him for four years, you know him better than that!" Kate snapped

"You can never know somebody well enough, Agent Todd" Gibbs replied, walking away

Kate watched as Gibbs called for the elevator and stepped inside. She continued to glare at the elevator long after he had disappeared. Gibbs had known Tony longer than he'd known Kate, and he didn't think he knew Tony well enough. Well now, what did that say about their relationship? They had been sleeping together for eight months now and she felt more than comfortable around him, more comfortable than she'd ever felt around anyone else. And yet, he felt that he didn't know her well enough, perhaps even he didn't trust her. It stood to reason that if he didn't trust Tony when he'd known the man longer than he had Kate, then he obviously didn't trust her, didn't think she was honest. She thought their relationship was different. She thought Gibbs trusted her explicitly. Hell, he'd let her work on his boat with him. Kate's heart constricted as she thought of how much time they spent together and how much they were a part of each others lives. Kate clenched her jaw and got to her feet. As she walked to McGee's desk to collect the Baltimore files, she threw random glares at people who happened to look her way. McGee was right about there being something amiss in the relationship she had with Gibbs. She couldn't work him out lately; he'd been distant, spending more time with the boat than he had with her. When they'd get home in the evening/night, he'd retreat into the basement and wouldn't come out till much later. Grumbling, she walked back to her desk and slammed the paperwork down, attracting various stares and looks from other people. She flicked through the files, looking at pictures and skimming reports. After a few minutes of looking blankly at the reports, she realised she wasn't taking anything in. Sighing, she rubbed her face. She thought of Tony, and the pain he would obviously be in. Since Tony had come out eight months ago and told Gibbs and Kate that he was gay, Kate and Tony's relationship had changed to more of a brother/sister one. Kate had been encouraging and supportive to Tony as he'd worked up the courage to ask Andrew out. Tony had been unsure about Andrew's feelings towards him, not to mention not knowing if Andrew even swung that way. In the end, it had been Kate who'd asked Andrew over coffee one day. She'd found out, by indirectly asking him, about Andrew's sexual orientation, he'd even hinted at his feelings for Tony. Even after that though, Tony had still avoided confronting the man, only doing so when Gibbs had taken him aside and given him an order. After that, everything had gone like clockwork, of course there had been the usual relationship troubles that everyone ran into, but they'd worked through it and their relationship had grown stronger.

Kate stood up and stretched, looking over the empty desks in the bullpen and scowling at Gibbs'. Since a month ago, Gibbs had been impossible to live with, and she had no idea why. He'd been more distant and grumpy than usual, and they'd argued a lot more. Their arguments had gotten progressively more heated and the words more hurtful. It had reached a point where they didn't make up before going to sleep, which Kate had always tried to do. Lately, Kate had begun calling Tony after their arguments to rant and rave, and to try to calm down. Tony tried to reason out their arguments and Gibbs' mood change, saying that he was probably afraid of screwing up the relationship and was unknowingly pushing her away. He'd told her to confront him about it and try to talk it through with him. But when she'd done that, Gibbs had retreated into the basement and didn't even come up for dinner, waiting until she had gone to sleep before coming to bed.

Kate looked at the paperwork in front of her and clenched her fists. To hell with staying here and looking over old files! She got up, gathering up the files and her bag.

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Gibbs looked around the caravan park, noting the people who lived there. This case was going to be interesting. He approached Agent Cox as the man finished talking to a cop. Cox nodded to the cop, shaking his hand and turned around, almost walking into Gibbs.

Cox smiled and apologized, "Special Agent Gibbs. We've been expecting your arrival"

"Agent Cox" Gibbs greeted the man, "What can you tell us?"

"About the crime scene? Pretty simple. Your ME has already taken the body. We've already photographed and sketched the scene. Still working on bagging and tagging everything and talking to witnesses…"

"Witnesses?" Gibbs asked, raising his eyebrows

"Yeah, neighbours heard the disturbance. A few saw a man leave, but the accounts on the man's appearance are confused and vary from a short fat man with light hair, to a tall lean man wearing a balaclava. They can't seem to agree on anything apart from it being a man, but I wouldn't take their word for gospel"

"Any other reason to believe it was a female?"

"No sir, but then we have no other reason to believe it was a male". Gibbs nodded. "In any case, all appearances suggest that it was a robbery gone wrong. Back window is broken and there is signs of forced entry, also signs of a struggle. Neighbours say that the man who owned the place…"

"Said man have a name?"

"Not that we know. Neighbours only know he was in the navy, none remember his name"

"Any documents or paperwork in there with his name on it?"

"We're still looking now. The place was trashed, every room is littered, stuff everywhere, almost like somebody was looking for something. Anyway, as I was saying, the man wasn't expected back until next week. Neighbours heard a disturbance and called the police and paramedics. Police were first on the scene, but by the time they arrived, the intruder was gone, and the man was dead"

"Right" Gibbs nodded, making notes in his notepad, "We know if anything's missing?"

"Nothing obvious that we can see, such as a TV or DVD player and such. But we have no idea. The man lived alone, if anything that isn't blatantly obvious was stolen, then we'd have no way of knowing"

Gibbs nodded again, "Girlfriend?"

"He had one last time the neighbours saw him. Or at least there was a woman who visited him a few nights a week. But she disappeared a week or two before he deported"

"Neighbours know where he was assigned to go?" Cox shook his head. "What about the woman, where'd she go?"

"They don't know, she just stopped coming one day" Cox replied

"Description?"

"Vague at best. Accounts on her are conflicting, and no, we don't have a name for her either"

"Okay thanks, we'll take it from here" Gibbs said

Cox nodded and left, gathering his own agents.

Gibbs walked to McGee, "Anything?"

The younger agent shook his head, "I spoke to a few neighbours, but most of them couldn't have us what day it is or who's currently president, let alone what they saw last night"

Gibbs nodded and sighed, "Well, let's see if any of the others know anything. Everything bagged and tagged?"

"Yeah, Agent Python finished up before he left. He said he'd send it to Abby as soon as he gets back" McGee replied

"Right. Let's get to work then" Gibbs said, walking off to talk to more of the neighbours

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Kate rang the doorbell and took a step back. Gibbs would be pissed off when he found out that she wasn't in the office, and even more pissed off when he found out where she was and that she wouldn't be coming back to the office today. But he'd have to figure that out for himself because she hadn't bothered to leave him a note. He wouldn't be too happy when she got home tonight either, but she'd deal with that later, right now though, she didn't care about the consequences, she just wanted to make sure Tony was okay. She rang the doorbell again and waited for an answer. Frowning, she went to one of the windows and looked through, hoping to see something. Something moved in the rear of the house and she heard a glass smash. Moving swiftly back to the door, she pulled out her gun, and quickly opened the door, leveling her gun at the figure, "NCIS! Federal Agent, freeze!"

The figure slowly put its hands in the air and spoke softly, "Damn Kate, put the gun down. And stop bloody yelling"

Kate squinted in the dark, lowering her gun, "Tony?"

Tony put his hands down, "Who'd you think? I'm the only one who lives here, remember?"

Kate winced and holstered her weapon, "Sorry Tony"

Tony waved his arm at her, "S'ok. Can you shut the door? It's letting in too much light"

Kate closed the door and walked towards Tony, who hadn't moved yet. She looked him up and down, "You look like shit, Tony"

Tony gave her a small smile and rubbed his hands over his face, "You shoulda seen me when Gibbs and that detective came to interrogate me". He walked into his kitchen and began looking through the cupboards

"Gibbs wasn't happy when he got back…" Kate said

"Is he ever happy?" Tony interrupted, stopping his search to look at Kate

"Well, when he's with the boat…"

"Should burn the damn thing, Kate" Tony interrupted again, resuming his search

"What are you looking for, Tony?" Kate asked, changing the topic of conversation

"Nothing" Tony replied distractedly, closing the cupboard and looking through the next

"You know, Tony, most people know what they have in their cupboards…?"

"I know" Tony replied, smiling, "Ah hah! Here it is!" he called triumphantly, pulling out a bottle of Whiskey

Kate frowned, "I didn't know you liked Whiskey"

"I don't, but I've ran outta beer. Gibbs gave me this for my birthday, in the first year that I was on the team, before he figured out I didn't like Whiskey" Tony replied. They walked to the lounge room and sat on opposite ends of the couch. Tony opened the bottle and poured a full glass of it, "Want some?"

"I don't think that's a good idea, Tony" Kate replied

"Awww, come on, Kate, don't spoil my fun." Tony pleaded with her

"Tony, I think you've had enough" Kate responded

Tony gave a small smile, "You're such a mother-hen. Please? It's no fun getting drunk on my own"

"Getting? I'd say you're already there" Kate said, crossing her arms

"I had a small sleep before you got here…" Tony said hopefully

Kate sighed, "No, really Tony. I don't like alcohol much anymore, it just doesn't appeal to me like it used to"

Tony sighed dramatically, "Kate, you're getting old in your young age"

"Yeah" Kate agreed, "It's all Gibbs' fault"

Tony lifted up his glass, "Cheers, I'll drink to that". Tony closed his eyes and sculled half of the glass, he put the glass down and screwed up his face, "Uck, that tastes like shit"

Kate laughed and patted Tony on his back as he coughed. "That'll teach you"

"Yeah" Tony agreed, staring into the bottom of the glass, then quickly drinking the rest. He put the glass down on the coffee table and screwed up his face again as he swallowed the strong drink. "I miss him, Kate"

Sighing, she put one of her hands over his, "I know you do, Tony"

Tears began forming in Tony's eyes, and he was powerless to stop them as they rolled down his cheeks. Kate moved on the couch and put her arms around him, whispering soothing words in his ear. For Kate, he was like a brother: sometimes they annoyed the hell out of each other and other times they got along really well, but at the end of the day, they knew the other would always be there to lend an ear or a shoulder if necessary.

"We were going to get old together, Kate" Tony whispered, trying unsuccessfully to hold back the sobs

Kate held him tighter, looking at the ceiling in an effort to hold back her own tears. Tony had lost his partner, the one person who completed him, and Kate felt that she was losing her partner, the one person who completed her.

"We were going to…" Tony trailed off, sobbing "And now he's…"

"Shhh" Kate soothed, holding him close and rubbing his back

Kate continued to hold Tony in her arms even after he fell asleep. She didn't want to move in case it woke him up and to be brutally honest; she didn't even have the energy to move.

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That's it for chapter 6!...Hope you liked it! Please review, tell me what you think


	7. Chapter 7

**Sinister Intentions**

AN: Sorry about the delay, been busy lately...

Just a side note, is anybody else having trouble using the ruler between paragraphs..?

Thankyou for the reviews!

Thankyou also to Kate for her fantastic work and help!

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Kate woke up to the sound of her cell ringing, she hadn't even realised she'd fallen asleep. Moving Tony carefully, she reached into her pocket and took out the offending object.

"Todd" she answered quietly, not wanting to wake Tony

"Kate! Where the hell are you? I told you to stay at the office and go through those reports! That was four hours ago!" Gibbs barked on the other end of the phone

Kate blinked, she didn't know she'd been here that long, but she was hardly going to let him know that. "I'm at Tony's house…"

"What? Why? Kate, he's a suspect in this investigation, you can't…" Gibbs interrupted her

"Gibbs, we both know he didn't do this" Kate whispered harshly, interrupting him, "He wouldn't hurt a fly…"

"You ever met somebody who would?" Gibbs asked

"I'm serious!"

"So am I. Look, Kate, the FBI have DiNozzo as their prime suspect and he hasn't got an alibi. All they need is to find a motive, they can bluff their way through the rest, he was at the crime scene, we took him there. I need you to go through the reports from Baltimore and see what they turn up"

"You think he did this" Kate stated

"I want to find the bastard who did this, Kate. And if it's DiNozzo…!"

"Tony didn't do it!" Kate snapped, keeping her voice low as Tony stirred, "Gibbs, I can't talk now, Tony needs me" she said, hanging up on him

"Who's that?" Tony asked, his voice thick from sleep and alcohol

"Nobody important" Kate responded, "Go back to sleep" she said, stroking his hair

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Gibbs heard the disconnected signal on his cell and brought it away from his ear, holding it at arms length. Squinting at the object in disbelief, he wondered what just happened. Nobody had ever hung up on him, nobody had dared to. He frowned and began trying to think of other possible reasons why he had been disconnected from Kate.

Perhaps her cell was out of battery? She often forgot to recharge the damn thing…No, he had seen her recharge it the night before. Maybe she was out of range…No, DiNozzo never seemed to have trouble receiving calls from there. _Or maybe she had just hung up on you_, he thought. _Dammit!_ He thought as he threw his cell on his desk, causing it to smash open. He cursed loudly and picked it up. "McGee! Fix this, reboot it or whatever!" he called, throwing his cell to the younger agent.

McGee caught the cell and turned back to his computer, "On it, boss. Just give me a second; I've almost finished uploading…"

"Now, McGee!" Gibbs barked, glaring at him

"Right, t-the financial r-records c-can wait" McGee stuttered

Gibbs grumbled and stood up, "Need coffee" he said as made his way to the elevator

Half an hour later, Gibbs returned to the bullpen with two coffees. Finishing one of them off, he threw the cup into his trashcan and took a sip of the other.

"McGee! You get hold of Kate!" Gibbs asked, sitting behind his desk

"No, ah, didn't know you wanted me to, boss" McGee replied, confused

Gibbs grumbled, "Fix my cell?"

"It's on your desk, boss. Ah, boss, can I leave early? Abby wants to go to one of her friend's party's and…" McGee asked

"Abby can go" Gibbs responded, focusing on his computer

"Ah, she wanted me to, um, go as well…?" McGee said

"Nope" Gibbs replied, squinting at the screen

"Ok" McGee said, "Ah, why not?"

"Because I said so, McGee!" Gibbs snapped, finally looking at him.

McGee frowned, but nodded and continued working. Gibbs watched the other agent for a while, before growling and picking up his phone. He punched in Kate's number and waited whilst it rang, then cut out. He frowned and tried again, only to have some annoying machine voice tell him that the cell was switched off. Changing tactics, he decided to call Tony's home phone, but found that it had also been disconnected. Growling again, he tried calling Tony's cell. However instead of only hearing it ring on the other end of the phone, he heard it ringing from Tony's desk. The younger man had left his cell at the office.

At around 2100, Abby came stalking into the office and demanded that Gibbs let McGee to go to her friend's party. He eventually gave in and let the younger agent go. A few hours later, closer to midnight, he decided to go home. He sighed, he didn't like it when he and Kate argued, but it seemed to happen so often…Grabbing a change of clothes from the filing cabinet, he left the building and tried to remember the name of the hotel he'd stayed at a few months ago.

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That's it for chapter 7! ...Hope you liked it! Please review!


	8. Chapter 8

**Sinister Intentions**

Author's Note: Thankyou for all the reviews! I really appreciate them

And a huge thankyou to Kate who has been a great help and gave me some great ideas.

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Gibbs looked up as he heard the elevator ding and scowled. Kate strolled into the bullpen and booted up her computer, sitting behind her desk.

"You're late!" he barked

"Yeah, ten minutes late, Gibbs" Kate responded, coolly

"You have a reason!" Gibbs asked, glaring at her

"Had to go home and get changed" Kate replied

"You didn't come home last night!" Gibbs asked

"You're one to talk, you didn't either!" Kate snapped back at him

"What makes you think that?"

"I have my sources, Gibbs"

"Kate, how's Tony?" McGee asked, looking up from the papers he held as he walked into the bullpen, oblivious to all going on around him

Before Kate could reply, Gibbs stood up and growled something incomprehensible at the both of them. Kate coolly glared at him before returning her attention to her computer.

Surprisingly the day passed quickly, few words were passed between Kate and Gibbs, causing the bullpen to almost settle into silence. Gibbs and McGee continued to work on the current case whilst Kate read through Tony's files from his days in the police department, but it didn't amount to much. They were running out of time. If their killer followed his pattern, the next murder would take place within the next twelve hours.

Around 2130, McGee took his leave, exiting the bullpen as fast as he could to get away from the two agents. Kate left soon after, leaving Gibbs alone in the bullpen again. Two and a half hours, and four coffee cups later, Gibbs also left the building, however unlike the night before, he decided to go home and confront Kate if he needed to.

However, when he got home, he noticed her car was not in the driveway. Frowning, he let himself into the empty house and called for Kate. When he received no answer, he tried her cell, which was still off. Feeling slightly concerned, and slightly irritated, he decided to call Tony; she may have gone over there again.

Dialing Tony's number, Gibbs began pacing, trying to wait patiently for Tony to answer.

"DiNozzo" eventually came the slurred and croaky reply

"DiNozzo, where the hell is Kate!" Gibbs asked more harshly than he intended

"Why?" Tony asked

"Why do ya think, DiNozzo?" Gibbs barked

"She didn't think you cared, boss" Tony stopped to yawn, "But she's not here, you should try…"

Gibbs didn't hear the rest as he hung up on Tony. Running a hand through his hair, he tried to figure out where she could be. He paced into the kitchen and put on a pot of coffee. He hoped he hadn't driven her away; this was why he never dated coworkers. Growling at his insecurities, he called her cell again, only to get the same response. Leaning against the counter, he put his head in his hands and listened to the sound of the coffee brewing.

In the distance, he heard a car approaching. He listened as the sound of the car got closer and immediately knew who it was; he could identify the sound of that car anywhere. Getting up, he swiftly made his way to the door and watched as the car pulled into their driveway. Kate turned off the car and got out. Locking the car, she turned back to the house and saw Gibbs standing in the doorframe.

"Where have you been?" Gibbs asked, hating how he sounded like a parent

"None of your business" Kate replied harshly, adding, "I have friends, Gibbs"

Gibbs moved aside to let her in, "I was worried about…"

"Save it, Gibbs!" she snapped, "Go work on your goddamn boat or something!"

Gibbs watched her retreating back and tried to think of where everything had turned to shit. He sighed and swallowed the lump in his throat, closing the door. Following Kate to the bedroom, he knew they had to sort this out tonight; otherwise this could be the beginning of the end. He could feel it in his coffee-filled-gut. As he closed the distance to the bedroom, he could feel his impending doom and vaguely wondered if he hadn't left a baseball bat somewhere in their room.

"Kate?" he called as he stood just outside the room. When he received no answer, he sighed, "Can I come in?"

"No!" she snapped, slamming the half-opened-door closed

Gibbs' heart constricted and his mouth went impossibly dry. He took a deep, steadying breath and asked, "Can we at least talk?"

"What is there to talk about?" Kate asked

Gibbs sighed and rested his forehead on the door, closing his eyes, "Kate, I'm sorry. I know I've been a bastard lately, but…that's who I … I mean, ah," he sighed again, "I know Tony isn't capable of, of murder. I just want to clear his name, and whilst what the FBI have is circumstantial…they can still take him to court, especially now with the link to the Baltimore case…Kate?"

"Yeah?" he heard her ask softly

"I'm sorry. I know I screwed up. I always do, well, in relationships anyway" he snorted, "Please, Kate. I …we can't just let this go"

He heard movement, then slowly felt the door open. Looking into her watering eyes, Gibbs heart constricted again, "I'm sorry" he said as he pulled her into a hug.

"Just, don't do it again, okay?" Kate said into his shoulder

He rested his chin on her head, "Okay"

"Promise?" Kate asked

Gibbs sighed and looked down at her, cupping her head with his hand, "I promise"

"Good" Kate responded, pulling him tighter into the hug. She was glad they had made up, she didn't like being at odds with him. And sleeping on Tony's couch wasn't that comfortable. "Jethro? Let's go to bed"

Gibbs slowly released her and gave her a gentle smile, "After you, dearest"

Kate smiled and playfully hit him in his stomach, "Don't call me 'dearest', you make me sound like an old lady"

"Well, you know…" Gibbs said thoughtfully, tilting his head to the side

"Are you calling me old? Agent Gibbs?" Kate interrupted, narrowing her eyes at him

"Nope" Gibbs said, slightly shaking his head with a small smile on his face

Kate studied his face for a while, "Who are you calling old? Old man"

Gibbs smirked, "Well, that's exactly my point. You're in a relationship with an old man, which would make you…" he left the sentence hang

Kate punched his arm, "Let's go to bed"

Gibbs smiled and absently rubbed his arm, though Kate hadn't punched it hard and followed her into the room.

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That's it for chapter 8!...Hope you liked it! Please review


	9. Chapter 9

**Sinister Intentions**

AN: Sorry about the delay, I got stuck and then almost forgot about this fic

Thankyou for the reviews, I'm glad you like it

Thankyou also to Kate for her ongoing support and help

* * *

Gibbs slowly opened his eyes and wondered what had woken him up. Squinting at his alarm clock, he found the time was 0500. Yawning, he looked down at the sleeping figure who had her head rested on his chest. He smiled and stroked her hair, before kissing the top of her head and moving slowly out of the bed so as not to wake her.

Once in the kitchen, he put on a pot of coffee and leaned against the bench with his eyes closed until the coffee was ready. He poured himself a cup of coffee and sat down at the table. He was glad he'd made up with Kate; he couldn't stand to be at odds with her. But all they'd been doing lately was getting on each other's nerves. And the time that it took them to make up had gradually increased.

When his marriages had got to this stage, he knew it was only a matter of time before he was signing the divorce papers. Sighing, he took a deep gulp of the strong hot coffee. They'd only been in a relationship for around eight months, they weren't married yet, hell, he hadn't even proposed and they were already having these arguments. Taking another deep drink of his coffee, he tried to crush the panic that threatened to overwhelm him as he thought of marriage, his greatest arch nemesis. None of his marriages worked out, so why would it be any different with Kate?

Putting his cup on the table, he took deep breaths and gripped the table hard to stop his hands from shaking. He took a few more deep breaths until his breathing returned to normal and his hands stopped shaking. Finishing off the rest of his coffee, he decided to go for a run to clear his head; the fresh air always seemed to help.

* * *

Kate looked at the clock and frowned. Almost midday and they still hadn't heard anything about another murder. According to the MO, the killer was supposed to attack early this morning, but nothing had happened. Sighing, she started to go through the list of suspects that the Baltimore police had come up with. She matched the suspects on the list and began trying to find out where they were now and what they were doing.

"Find anything?" Gibbs asked as he walked into the bullpen, stopping at her desk

"No" Kate responded

"Go over it again, I want you familiar with the case, to know it inside out" Gibbs said

"Why?" Kate asked

"Because you're going to Baltimore. Unofficially, to have a closer look, I want you to know what you're looking for. Officially, you're going there to check some leads from this case, turns out our dead marine's ex-wife lives there, I'll give you the address" Gibbs replied

Kate nodded, "When do I leave?"

"In a few hours…" Gibbs was interrupted by his cell, "I'll give you more details later" he said as he fished in his pocket for his cell. Eventually he pulled it out and flipped it open, "Yeah, Gibbs". His eyes darted back and forth, and he squinted as he listened to the person on the other end of the phone, "At home I would assume" he told the other person.

Kate watched his face as he listened to what the other person was saying, it obviously wasn't good news. Gibbs hung up and stared into space for a moment.

"Gibbs?" Kate asked

"I'm coming with you to Baltimore" he finally replied, "Detective's Brooks and Wilkinson were just murdered"

"The detectives who investigated the Baltimore case" McGee said from behind his desk

"Ya think, McGee!" Gibbs snapped, turning to glare at the agent. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, "That was Fornell, wanted to know where DiNozzo is. Apparently he wasn't home last night. They've put out a warrant for his arrest…"

"They're going to arrest him?" Kate asked, disbelievingly

"Not if I arrest him first!" Gibbs replied

"What the hell for!" Kate asked

Gibbs didn't answer; instead he studied Kate's face. Eventually he replied, "Get your gear, we're going to Baltimore. McGee, see if you can't get us an early flight". With that, Gibbs stalked out of the bullpen and headed to the elevator.

Kate watched his retreating back and subconsciously growled; he'd done a complete 180 from where they'd been last night. She glared at the elevator doors as they closed, taking their boss, no doubt to his caffeine dealer.

"He get out of the wrong side of the bed this morning?" McGee asked. Kate turned to glare at him. "What I mean is, ah, he seems to be, um,…" he stuttered

"Tense? Annoying? Stupid? Pissed off? More of a bastard than usual? Yeah, I know, but don't worry I'll make sure to tell him" Kate responded

"No, no no no" McGee protested, "That's not what I meant"

"Yeah, well, it's exactly what I meant" Kate responded

Kate continued to work on her computer for another five or so minutes, whilst McGee made some phone calls to get them booked in for an earlier flight. Eventually Kate stood up and began to gather her gear. She wondered over to McGee's desk and sat on the edge.

"Flight leaves in an hour and a half" McGee told her, finally sitting back in his chair

Kate nodded and looked up as she heard the elevator ding. Expecting to see Gibbs, she got off McGee's desk and put a scowl on her face. However, instead of Gibbs, Fornell walked out and entered the bullpen.

"Agent Todd, McGee" Fornell greeted them

"Agent Fornell, I would say it's nice to see you again, but really, I'd be lying" Kate responded

Fornell gave a small smile, "Where's Agent Gibbs?"

"Right here" Gibbs said from behind Fornell, "What are you doing here, Fornell?"

Fornell turned around, "Social visit. Wanted to make sure you wouldn't do anything stupid"

"Like what?" Gibbs asked, squinting at the other agent

"Like flying to Baltimore. This is our case, Gibbs, you have no jurisdiction. I also understand that your team has been reassigned. We'll send you the information when we've finished with it, there is no need for you and your people to get involved, you'd only get in the way" Fornell said

"Oh, we have no intention of getting in the way" Gibbs responded, keeping his face straight

"So why are you flying to Baltimore?" Fornell asked

"To follow a lead in our case" Gibbs replied, tersely

"Bullshit!" Fornell exclaimed, "What lead?"

Gibbs smirked, "Can't tell you that, Agent Fornell, it's on a need-to-know basis, and frankly, you don't"

"I find that hard to believe, Agent Gibbs. I cannot allow you to go to Baltimore, essentially, you and your team are also suspects" Fornell responded

"If you don't _allow_ us to go to Baltimore, I'll have you arrested for impeding an investigation" Gibbs told him in a tone that meant he was serious

"You can't do that, Jethro. I'm FBI. Technically, this is MY case. I'm the one who should be arresting you" Fornell replied

"For what!" Gibbs asked

"Why are you going to Baltimore? I'm not going to have you disrupt this investigation, if that means having you or your team arrested, I will not hesitate to do so" Fornell replied

"I told you, we are following a lead in a case"

"What case? What lead?"

"I don't answer to you, Tobias"

"But you answer to me" Director Morrow interrupted, walking up to the two arguing agents, "Answer the question Agent Gibbs"

Gibbs sighed, "Our marine's ex-wife lives in Baltimore"

"Ask her over the phone then" Fornell responded

"He used to live there. Did so for three years, I want to find out more information about him and his past" Gibbs said, getting irritated

Morrow studied his agent in silence for a few minutes before saying, "Ok, you go to Baltimore. On one condition, you stay away from this case. If I catch you interfering with it at all, I'll arrest you myself. Clear?"

"As mud, sir" Gibbs responded

"Good. Agent Fornell," Morrow said, motioning for Fornell to follow him as they left the bullpen, conversing quietly

Gibbs turned around to look at Kate and raised his eyebrows, then looked at McGee, "What time do we leave?"

"Just over an hour" McGee replied as he got up and moved to the printer

"Right. Whilst we're out, I want you to construct a history of our marine, I want to know everything from what his first word was to what he was thinking about when he died." Gibbs instructed him whilst looking at Kate who glared at him. He sighed and added, "Also, I want you to make a list of the people who have a grudge against DiNozzo"

McGee nodded, "On it, boss."

"Did you find anything interesting in his financial records?" Gibbs asked

"Nothing unusual. I mean, unless you count withdrawing $15, 000 as unusual" McGee replied

"I do, McGee" Gibbs responded

"Right, well, I'm trying to track the money now. Other than that, the records only showed that Tony eats too much take-out and spends a lot of money on clothes and, um, assorted videos" McGee said

Gibbs closed his eyes and pinched his nose, "I was asking about our dead marine, Petty Officer Brent's financial records, McGee, not DiNozzo's"

McGee frowned, "Ok. Ah, well, Brent also made a large withdrawal prior to his death…"

"How large?" Gibbs interrupted

"$32,000. I'm also trying to track that money down" McGee replied

"Phone records?" Kate asked

"Haven't had the chance to look at them yet, for both DiNozzo and Brent" McGee responded

"Okay, do that in your spare time" Gibbs said as he walked to the elevator

* * *

That's it for chapter 9!...Hope you liked it! Please review! Tell me what you think...next chapter should be posted soon, it's already in the making :D 


	10. Chapter 10

**Sinister Intentions**

AN: Thankyou for all the reviews! I really appreciate them! Keep them coming :-D

Thankyou also to Kate for her help and support!

* * *

Gibbs thumped the steering wheel of the car and let out a frustrated groan at the traffic they were stuck in

"Must be a crash" Kate suggested

"Ya think?" Gibbs sighed and pointed to the sign of a street several hundred meters down the road, "What street's that?"

Kate squinted at the sign, "Elton st."

Gibbs nodded, "Good". They lapsed into silence as they were caught in their own thoughts.

"Can we listen to the radio?" Kate asked, "Maybe it will have a report on the traffic"

"Nope. Still haven't fixed the radio" Gibbs answered as his cell rang. He dug it out of his pocket and barked into it, "Gibbs!"

"Boss, just calling to see how the investigation's going. Any leads on Drew's killer?" Tony asked on the other end of the phone

Gibbs covered the mouth piece of his cell and turned to Kate, speaking in a hushed tone, "Get Abby to trace my call"

"No need, boss, I can tell you that. If you ask nicely" Tony said, apparently overhearing

"Where are you, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked

"Guess that's as close to you asking nicely, hey?" Tony asked. When he received no reply, he answered, "Baltimore. I'm in Baltimore"

Gibbs closed his eyes, wishing he hadn't just heard Tony say that, "Why?" he asked as he opened his eyes

"Why not?" Tony asked

"DiNozzo! Tell me why you are in Baltimore!" Gibbs snapped

"Jeez, boss, no need to get grouchy…" Tony responded

"I am not grouchy" Gibbs stated as he inched the car forwards in the traffic that was hardly moving.

"Ah hah. Um, anyway, I came to visit a friend" Tony said

"Any reason you chose to visit this friend now?" Gibbs asked

"Yeah, she just had a baby" Tony answered, "I figured that since I had some time, I'd come and see them. Haven't seen them in so long, it's been like, five years. Her husband and I went to college…"

"DiNozzo!" Gibbs interrupted him, "Can you tell me where you were and what you were doing in the early hours of this morning?"

"Why? Has something happened?" Tony asked

"Yeah" Gibbs replied

"Care to expand …?" Tony asked

"No" Gibbs interrupted him, "Answer the question"

He heard Tony sigh on the other end of the phone, "Don't know what time I left home, I couldn't sleep, didn't even try" he took a breath "I was on the road when you rang, I had my home phone divert to my cell if I got any calls, didn't want to miss any leads or anything you guys got" then in a quieter tone, "Not that you'd tell me anyway…"

Tony sighed and continued in a louder voice, "Arrived in Baltimore at 0200 this morning. I checked into a hotel for the night, had a few drinks in some too small, too hot and too smoky bar just down from the hotel. Went to bed around 0430, didn't wake up until around 1100. Do I need to continue? Or does that cover the times you need to know about?"

"Nope, that covers it. Tony, the FBI has a warrant for your arrest" Gibbs stated

"They think I killed Drew" Tony deduced

"Yeah. And you're trip to Baltimore hasn't earned you any brownie points either" Gibbs responded

Kate snatched the phone off of Gibbs, earning her a glare from him, "Tony!"

Gibbs rolled his eyes and after looking around, went off-road and eventually got onto Elton St.

"Kate! Miss me?" Tony asked, smirking

Kate chuckled, "That would imply that I like you, Tony"

Tony laughed, "Yeah, can't have that. So, whatcha been up to?"

Kate sighed, "Looking into your background, profiling Drew's killer, looking into your financial records"

"NCIS is handling the investigation?" Tony asked

"No, the FBI is, we're just …" Kate replied

"Doing your own investigating" Tony suggested, smiling. They listened in silence for some time before Tony broke the silence, "So, I guess Gibbs is wondering why I withdrew $15,000 from my bank account the other day"

Gibbs looked at Kate, "What'd he just say? I heard my name. Put him on the speaker"

Kate did as she was told, whilst answering Tony's question, "Yeah, that's one way of putting it"

Gibbs frowned, wondering what had been said. Tony said, "I put a deposit on a car I intend to buy fairly soon, classic car, 1958 …"

"Where are you buying this car from, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked

"You want to track the money down" Tony smiled, "'Classic cars', lame I know, but it's what they are, classics. Name of the guy who sold it to me was Ian Brown, remembered his name cause he reminded me of that guy who put you in the freezer last year. No relation though. No one in his family is or was navy or military, the car-yard was kinda a family thing, passed from one generation to…"

"Tony, I don't need the guy's history. I only wanted his name" Gibbs interrupted

"Sorry, boss, just wanted to make sure you guys would know I'm not lying. Never had a warrant out for my arrest before" Tony said, "Should I turn myself in? Or do the whole 'The Fugitive' thing, try to find the one-armed man myself"

"I think it would be a good idea to turn yourself in, Tony. Just don't say anything till we get there, don't want them twisting your words around" Gibbs replied

"You're on your way here?" Tony asked, "For me?"

Kate and Gibbs exchanged a glance, "Tony, we're here for you. We're gonna work this out" Kate said

"And Gibbs?" Tony asked, but Gibbs had already hung up

* * *

McGee frowned and made another note on his PDA. He's been searching through Tony's phone records for both his cell and home phone. After searching through the previous six or seven days, he realised that the records seemed to be incomplete. However, after debating whether or not to call Gibbs and Kate, he deduced the reason why. Tony must have spent some of the nights at Drew's house and therefore made calls on Drew's phone and not his own.

Wondering why they hadn't searched Drew's phone records earlier, McGee found the records and looked through them, not particularly liking what he found. One number appeared to have called the house at least seven, even eight times a day. McGee entered the number into a search program and pulled the records of Drew's cell.

Whilst waiting for the computer to 'think' – as Gibbs called it – he looked through his desk draws, trying to locate the mini sized chocolate bars he'd put in there last week. Grumbling as he closed the last draw, he looked through the draws again. As he slammed the last one closed, a sparkly piece of paper from his trash-bin caught his eye.

Looking into the bin, he saw a few wrappers from the chocolates that had been in his desk. He grumbled and rolled his eyes, Tony must've gotten hungry last time he'd been here and raided his desk.

Sighing, he returned his attention back to his computer as his phone rang.

"McGee!" he answered abruptly

"What have you got for me, McGee?" he heard his boss snap on the other end of the phone

"Boss! I um, I, I thought you were on the flight" McGee stuttered, getting caught off guard, and subconsciously straightening up

"It's been delayed" Gibbs replied, "Anything on our Marine?"

"Uh, not yet, but I did run his phone records. He calls his mum every second Thursday and his brother every other month. There are regular calls from another number, I think they're from his girlfriend" McGee replied

"You think, McGee?" Gibbs asked

"Ah, I, um, I'll find out" McGee responded

"Grudges?" Gibbs asked

"Don't know" McGee replied

"Then what have you been doing, McGee? Playing that star-wars game DiNozzo sent you?" Gibbs snapped

"Ah, no, um, I got Tony's phone records, and Drew's" McGee replied, gaining confidence as he spoke, "Drew regularly got calls on his home phone, I'm tracking the number now. And by regularly, I mean from around six to twelve calls a day. Ah, hang on" McGee paused as his computer beeped, "The number is a pay-phone on Hood st"

"That's a block from where Drew lives" Gibbs offered

"Right. Um," McGee paused as his computer beeped again, "I just pulled his cell phone records. There's another number here that called him more than the one on his home phone"

"How often?" Gibbs asked

"At least ten calls throughout the day and night. Tracking down that number now, but I'm guessing it's another pay phone, probably the one across the road from here. That should narrow down the list, and time" McGee paused, squinting at the screen, wishing it would go faster, "Ah hah, I'm right"

"See if any of the conversations were recorded, I want to know if this is a stalker, or somebody Drew was having an affair, or other relationship with" Gibbs stated

"Well, if it helps, Drew got a new cell a week ago, stopped calling people altogether on his other cell. Also, the only person he regularly called on either of his phones is Tony" McGee supplied

"Ok, anything else?" Gibbs asked

"No" McGee replied before he heard the dial tone, telling him Gibbs had hung up

* * *

That's it for chapter 10!...Hope you liked it! Please review! Tell me what you think... I'm gonna try to get the next chapter up before the end of the week, so wish me good luck :) 


	11. Chapter 11

**Sinister Intentions**

AN: THankyou all for your reviews! I love them

Also, a huge thankyou to Kate for her great support and help!

* * *

Tony sighed and picked up another book, looking over the back-cover, but not seeing any words. Putting down the book, he looked around the remainder of the small bookstore and wondered why his friend had decided to work here. More to the point, why did she decide to continue working here after she'd just had a baby. As far as he knew, women usually took around a year off from work after having a child.

"Tammy, remind me again why you own a bookstore" Tony asked, coming out of the corner where he'd been checking out the 'crime' books

"Because I like books, Tony" Tammy replied

Tony frowned, but nodded "Ok, but why come back so early?"

"Tony, I had the baby three months ago. And, I only have one employee. She was getting frustrated with having to work all the time" Tammy replied

"So?" Tony asked, leaning against a bookshelf

Tammy smiled, "You know, you haven't changed a lot. Have you?"

Tony smiled with her, "More than you think"

"Really?" she looked surprised, "Ok, you have my interest. What's changed then?"

"Apart from a new job?" Tony asked

Tammy rolled her eyes, "That's with NSIQ, isn't it?"

Tony laughed, "No, NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service."

"I see" she said, smirking

"Well, I feel a bit more settled in this job than any other. I had a serious relationship for around eight months. My…" Tony started to list things that had changed

"Eight months? I think that's a record Tony" Tammy sounded impressed

He gave a small smile, "Yeah. Um, want a coffee?" he asked, gesturing to the door

"I'd love one" Tammy replied

Tony shoved himself off the shelf and left the shop. Tammy and himself had been friends since he'd started working at Philly. They'd been in a short relationship, lasting three months. But they'd broken it off because they never seemed to have time to see each other.

Six months after they stopped the relationship, a guy from college, Ryan, had stopped by to see him. Tony had introduced Tammy and Ryan, who'd found 'love at first sight'. Tony hadn't been offended in any way by their relationship, he was happy for them both. A year later, a few weeks before Tony had left Philly, they'd gotten married.

Tony smiled, remembering the years Ryan and himself had spent in college. Ah, back in the day…

Walking back into the bookstore with two fresh coffees, Tony noticed two uniformed police officers talking with Tammy. Tony sighed, wishing he had more time. He'd planned to tell Tammy what was going on, then go to the cops and turn himself in.

The cops must have heard him sigh, as they both turned around to face him. One of the cops reached for his gun, his hand hovering over his hip.

The other cop took a step forward, frowning, "Anthony DiNozzo?"

Tony studied both men, "Yeah," he held up both coffees, "Lemme just put these down. I'll come quietly," he nodded towards the cop whose hand was still over his hip, "No need for force"

The cops nodded and watched him carefully as he settled the coffees on the counter.

"Tony, what is this about?" Tammy asked, sounding concerned

"Ah, long story" Tony replied, turning again to face the officers, "Suppose you want me in cuffs?"

"Yeah" the closet man responded

Tony nodded and turned around again, putting his hands behind his back and interlacing his fingers, thumbs pointing upwards. He heard movement from behind him and was almost thrown off balance as he was shoved against the counter.

"Whoa! I said I'd come quietly, there is no need for force!" Tony tried to say calmly

"Shut-up!" the cop ordered, pushing him to the ground, "Those detectives you killed, they were my friends! You bastard!"

"What detectives?" Tony asked the carpet as the cop put the cuffs on his wrists, far too tight for comfort

Tony was roughly rolled over and punched hard on his cheekbone in response.

"Enough, Johnson" the other cop stated, without much conviction

Johnson pulled himself away, but not before giving Tony a hard kick to his stomach. Tony doubled over, assuming the foetal position with a moan of pain.

"I said enough!" the other cop said

Tony breathed heavily into the carpet, before slowly uncurling himself and getting to his knees.

"That bastard," he heard Johnson say, pointing towards him, "Killed Alex and John"

Tony frowned, "Who?"

Johnson growled, "My friends. Detectives Brooks and Wilkinson" Johnson replied, kicking him again before the other cop restrained the man.

"My god, Tony" Tammy said, kneeling down next to him, unsure of exactly what she should do

"Control yourself, Eddie!" the other cop growled at Johnson, "He'll get more than his fair share of abuse in prison"

"You sound like you're siding with him, Larry! Like you feel sorry for him" snarled Johnson

Larry growled back, "Read him his rights!". Larry stalked back to where Tony was curled on the ground, "Get up!" he barked

"Don't hurt him!" Tammy snapped, still at his side

Larry took a deep breath and waited as Tony once again uncurled himself. Larry grabbed Tony's shoulder and hoisted him up as Johnson read his rights. Tony grunted in pain, and slowly limped out of the store, with Larry keeping a firm grip on his upper arm, helping him out.

* * *

Kate and Gibbs stepped out of the airport, wishing they'd brought warmer clothes. It was raining in Baltimore, whereas it had been sunny in DC. Gibbs grumbled, pulling his jacket tighter and watching Kate do the same. He studied her figure, realizing how thin the clothes she was wearing were. She was definitely dressed for hot weather. He sighed and took off his jacket, putting it around Kate's shoulders. Kate looked up at him questioningly.

Gibbs shrugged, "You're cold"

Kate rolled her eyes, "So are you"

"I'm a marine, Kate. Besides, I wear three layers of clothing on any given day…" Gibbs stated

"Yeah, I've been meaning to say something about that" Kate replied

"Why?" Gibbs asked, arching his eyebrow

"Curious. Why do you always wear so much clothing? Even when it's hot?" Kate asked

Gibbs smiled, "You know, curiosity killed the cat, Kate"

Kate smiled as well, "Yeah. But you look really good in that white T-shirt, Jethro"

Gibbs raised his eyebrows, a bemused expression on his face, "Thank you. Now, where's the rental?"

"We have to get a taxi to pick it up. Place is called 'Walker's Cars'" Kate replied

Gibbs nodded and headed for the line of taxis. Kate gave the address of the place to the driver and sat back in her seat, watching the expression on Gibbs' face.

"You worried about him?" she asked

Gibbs sighed and looked out the window, "I hope we can prove he didn't do this"

"We will" Kate insisted, resting her hand on his knee.

Gibbs nodded, "Hope so" he answered as his cell rang.

"Gibbs!" he snapped

"Boss. I've been arrested. You didn't tell me Wilkinson and Brooks were killed!" Tony said on the other end of the phone, sounding distressed, tired, desperate and nervous

"Thought it would be better if you didn't know, especially since you're in Baltimore" Gibbs replied, taken back by the sound of Tony's voice

"Yeah? Well you figured wrong. The cops who arrested me decided they would _educate_ me!" Tony responded

Gibbs closed his eyes and pinched his nose, "Sorry" he said, meaning it, "Where are you?"

Tony gave him the name of the precinct, which Gibbs relayed to Kate

"Boss, you're going to get me out of this, aren't you?" Tony asked, nervously

Gibbs nodded, rubbing his hand through his hair, making it stand up, "Yeah, Tony, we will" he answered, pausing for a moment "Tony? Hang on in there"

He heard a small sigh, "Yeah, I'll try. Just hurry, okay?"

"You think I hang around with my driving?" Gibbs asked before hanging up

* * *

THat's it for chapter 11!...Hope you liked it! Please review! Tell me what you think 


	12. Chapter 12

**Sinister Intentions**

AN: Thankyou for all the reviews, I really appreciate them!

Thankyou also to Kate for her ongoing help and support

Sorry about the delay, I've been heaps busy lately, but hopefully in about two-three weeks, I'll be able to do more work on my fics and get the chapters posted faster...

Oh yeah, and a belated Happy Halloween to everybody!

* * *

Gibbs' car screeched to a halt in the car park of the precinct Tony was being held at. The car ride from the car rental place to the precinct had felt like they were in a race. But for once, Kate wasn't complaining and truly appreciated the way Gibbs drove. Simultaneously, they got out of the car and approached the entrance. As they approached the front counter, Gibbs set his face in a scowl and waited for somebody to come to the desk. Kate took the time to look around the small station and wondered about the conditions of the cells. Gibbs dinged the bell a few times before calling back to see if anybody was there.

Eventually a young man, who couldn't have been any older than sixteen, approached the desk.

"Can I help you?" the young man asked

Gibbs raised his eyebrow at the stupid question and bit back his harsh reply, "We're here to see Special Agent DiNozzo, he was brought in here earlier,"

"And you are?" the young man asked

Gibbs and Kate flipped open their badges and showed it to the man, "Special Agents Gibbs and Todd,"

"I'm sorry, I can't let you see him," the man replied

"Why not?" Gibbs asked, getting frustrated

"I'm under orders, sir. We were told not to let both of you see him," the man responded nervously

Gibbs stepped back from the counter to keep his anger in check, as Kate stepped forward to pick up where he left off, "Somebody gave you our names and told you not to let us see him?"

The young man nodded in the affirmative

"Who?" Kate asked

"I don't know, ma'am, you're not allowed to see him," the man replied

Kate gave him a small smile, "Look, Officer…?"

"Denson," he supplied

"…Denson, under section 4 of the custodial act, we have visitation rights to access the person in custody, Agent DiNozzo. So I suggest you…" Kate told him

"Actually, that part only counts if you are family," Denson responded

"No, in correspondence with a recent high court decision, it includes us," Kate interrupted

Denson appeared to think about it for a while, before eventually leading them to the cells

Gibbs leant down and whispered in her ear, "Where did that come from?"

Kate mischievously smiled and said nothing.

"You have 10 minutes," Denson said as he showed them Tony, before leaving

"Kate," Tony greeted her when he saw them

"Hey, Tony," Kate said with a grin, "How are you?"

"Been better," Tony replied, then looked sheepily at Gibbs, acknowledging him "Boss"

"Tony," Gibbs responded, then sighed "I, ah, don't think you did it, Tony, you know that? The things I did were just procedural, so that you wouldn't be put away because you were too close,"

"Yeah, I know," Tony said, resignatedly

Gibbs smiled and some of the tension seemed to leave his shoulders. Turning to Kate, he asked, "So, will any of that procedural crap you remember be able to get him outta here?"

"Well, they won't realise him into our custody," Kate replied, then turned to Tony, "Did you get bail?"

"Haven't appeared in court yet for that to be sorted out," Tony replied

"Well, if we tag along, we could pay it," Kate responded

"If they grant me it," Tony replied

"They will," Gibbs assured them

* * *

"McGee," McGee answered his phone absently

"Mac-Geeee!" Abby whined, "I'm bored. Come down and keep me company,"

"Abs, I'm busy tracking down…" McGee protested

"You can do that down here," Abby interrupted, then added before she hung up, "Oh, and bring me a caf-Pow!, I need the caffeine boost,"

McGee sighed and rerouted his calls to Abby's lab. He got up and quickly made his way to the lab, stopping off to get a caf-Pow! on the way. As soon as Abby saw him enter, she ran up to him and grabbed the drink, giving him a large grin.

"Thanks, McGeek," Abby said, giving him a kiss on his cheek

McGee grinned and sat at the desk, "So, why are you bored? I thought Gibbs had you analyzing everything he could get his hands on,"

"He does, I'm waiting for all the results. And besides, I wanted some company," Abby explained, bouncing around the lab to stand behind him, "What does he have you doing?"

"Checking out Brent's history and constructing a list of people who have grudges against Tony," McGee replied, "Oh, and Gibbs wants you to check out any messages that were left on Drew's phone,"

"Cool. I was looking over the security tapes from the night Drew was killed," Abby responded, then tapped a few keys on her other monitor and motioned to the plasma, "It clearly shows Tony leaving, then coming back a few hours later. But something is hinky, and I don't know what,"

McGee raised his eyebrow and looked at the plasma, "Looks fine to me, Abby,"

"You're not trying hard enough, McGee. This is the only evidence that confirms Tony's alibi. Tony says he was here, why would he lie?" Abby asked, "This tape should show him here all night,"

"Maybe he just lost track of time," McGee suggested

"In the toilet, McGee?" Abby asked, "He said the only time he left was to go to the head,"

"Well, ah, he may have got carried away," McGee said, blushing

Abby raised her eyebrow, smiling slightly, "Doing what, Tim?"

"Well, ah, just, um, things…" McGee stammered as he cell rang

Glad for the interruption, McGee answered it.

"McGee, what do you have for me?" Gibbs asked on the other end of the phone

"Ah, hey boss. I'm still working on the list of people who have grudges against Tony. The list is really long and it's getting longer. As for Brent's history, he joined the corps as soon as he could. He doesn't spend much time back here, so he only rents the caravan," McGee answered

"Anything else?" Gibbs asked

McGee looked at Abby who was jumping up and down with her hand in the air, "Well I don't, but Abby does,"

"Put him on speaker," Abby said

"Hey Abs," Gibbs said as McGee put him on speaker

"Hey, boss-man. How's Tony?" Abby asked

"He's doing okay. What've you got for me?" Gibbs responded

"Well, I have the brand of shoe. It's a doc-martin," Abby replied happily

"Doc Martin?" Gibbs asked

"It's a brand Gibbs," Abby said, "Also the other fibers turned up nothing new, apart that I can definitely say that he was only attacked by one person,"

"Okay, and the blood?" Gibbs asked

"Yeah, we have blood, but I didn't get any matches. And I didn't get any finger prints," Abby responded

"I thought you said you had something to tell me, Abs," Gibbs said

"Well not yet, I'm still going over the security tape and I've just been told to look for any messages that may have been left. I was snowballed with the other case. I lifted a fingerprint from …" Abby explained

"You got a match?" Gibbs interrupted

"It's running through AFIS now," Abby replied

"Okay, anything else?" Gibbs asked

"What's happening with Tony?" Abby asked

Gibbs sighed, "He's trying to get bail now,"

"Bring him home, Boss-man," Abby ordered him

"Roger wilco," Gibbs replied, hanging up

* * *

That's it for chapter 12!...Hope you liked it! Sorry it was a bit short, the next chapter should be longer, and better... Please Review! Tell me what you think... 


	13. Chapter 13

**Sinister Intentions**

AN: Thankyou for all the reviews! They're great! Keep 'em coming :)

Also a huge thankyou to Kate for all her hard work and support

This chapter's a bit longer than usual, decided to give you all something more cos I haven't updated this fic in ages. But the instalments should be coming faster now, uni's broken up and my last exam is tomorrow jumps for joy ...anyway, on with the fic...

* * *

"Sorry to dampen your sex life, Kate," Tony said with a smirk as they left the court-room

Kate growled at him, the judges words echoing through her mind, _under the conditions that he be kept under NCIS custody…_

"Or maybe it would make your sex life even better, I mean just think of…" Tony continued

Gibbs slapped Tony over the back of his head, "Not gonna happen, DiNozzo,"

Tony rubbed the back of his head as Kate grinned at him.

"So, what's going on with my case? How long till I'm off the hook?" Tony asked

"However long it takes," Gibbs replied

"Okay, so what now? I mean, personally I'm hungry, but…" Tony let the sentence hang

"Well, we still haven't checked out the crime scene," Kate responded

"Yeah, and we haven't checked out the leads from our 'official' case," Gibbs added

"Well the crime scene will be similar to … Ah, but if the killer follows the MO to a T, then they would've drowned after the abuse," Tony told them

Gibbs stopped walking, "And how do you know that?"

"Because, I had some time to think, and the MO pretty much matches a case I worked here a few years ago. I mean the position and state of …" Tony took a deep breath and closed his eyes, "I filled in for one of the detectives working the case. The second murder scene that I went to was a double murder. Both bodies were found near a swamp, both had drowned shortly after being beaten and raped,"

"It was a double murder?" Kate asked

"Yeah," Tony replied, "It took us by surprise, we figure the perp was taken by surprise as well. We thought that he was caught in the act of killing his victim, so he killed the witness as well, in the same manner,"

Gibbs continued walking, "Why didn't it say that in the case notes?"

Tony frowned, "It should've. I wrote the report myself. I investigated four of the murders from that case, the second and third just happened to be on the same day. Check the TOD on the reports,"

Gibbs huffed, lost in his own thoughts.

"How long between the third and fourth murders?" Kate asked

Tony thought about it for a while, "Couldn't have been more than a day. Yeah, we were just about to call it a night when we were called back out. Helluva long day,"

"So the next murder should take place within the next few hours," Kate deduced

"Yeah, you could get a precise time limit if you look at the reports," Tony suggested

Gibbs pulled out his cell to make the call, but as he was about to dial the lab, it rang.

"Gibbs," he answered

"Agent Gibbs, I've just been informed that DiNozzo has been released into your custody," Morrow said on the other end of the phone

"Yes sir," Gibbs confirmed

"I thought I told you to stay away from this case, Agent Gibbs," Morrow responded

"You did, sir," Gibbs confirmed again, "But we came here with a lead for our other case. It was only once we landed was I informed of DiNozzo's arrest. And there was no way in hell I was gonna leave him in that hell-hole,"

"You're walking on thin ice here, Jethro," Morrow told him, then sighed, "Just be careful where you stand,"

Gibbs smirked, "Thankyou, sir," Gibbs hung up and called the lab

"The lab," Abby said over the speaker

Gibbs frowned, "That's very formal of you, Abs,"

"Boss-man!" Abby exclaimed, "Well, I knew it was you, and I know how you feel about my welcomes…"

Gibbs' frown deepened, "Abby, who's your friend?"

"How'd you know I had a friend over?" Abby asked

Gibbs rolled his eyes, "Just play nicely and don't make McGee jealous. Look, I need the times of death for the third and fourth murders that DiNozzo worked,"

"Okay, let's see," Abby paused, humming to herself, "Ah hah! Ok vic numero tre died at 0545 and vic numero quattro died at 2130,"

* * *

Tony lay down on the bed. Gibbs and Kate had decided against cuffing him so that he didn't decide to leave, but instructed him to stay in the room. They had the room next door and were prepared to leave him alone for the rest of the night. Tony rolled his eyes, hoping that if they decided to have some fun that they'd keep the noise down. _That_ was something he definitely didn't want to hear.

Tony closed his eyes, _okay, time to think about something different_ he thought. Then wondered what he'd be doing if he was at home, probably investigating some case. Turning over, he opened his eyes and looked at the clock: 21:06. He sighed, according to the times they'd worked out; the next victim would be dead in twenty-four minutes. Tony glared at the clock, tomorrow was going to be a long day.

Deciding to go to sleep early for a change, he reached over to turn off the lamp, only to have it lose power before he hit the switch. He heard a gasp from the room next door, figuring it to be Kate, Tony rolled his eyes. Trying to get some sleep, he closed his eyes and concentrated on his breathing. But he opened his eyes when he heard a sound outside his door. It was a soft tapping sound.

Tony sat up in the bed, watching the side of the room where he knew the door was. Suddenly the room seemed to be too dark for his liking. He cursed his over-active imagination as his heart-rate sped up and the room felt too warm and far too small. Dammit, he was a special agent and he still managed to feel scared because the lights were out and he was hearing the dingy motel creak. Hell, the fact that his two collegues – a former secret service agent and an ex-marine – were just next door, should've calmed his nerves, but it didn't.

Clutching the blanket, he slowly and quietly pulled it back and swung his legs over the side of the bed. Taking a shaky breath, he quickly got up and flattened himself against the nearest wall. He inched towards the window, desperate to let some light into the room. As he felt the curtains, he heard the noise from the door stop, but that made the silence unbearable and he could hear the blood rushing in his head.

He quietly pulled the curtains back quickly, not wanting to open them loudly incase it alerted the person he suspected was outside his room, but still desperate to have some light. As the light penetrated the room, he saw that it looked just as it had before the lights had gone out. Sighing in relief, his heart-rate began to normalize and suddenly the room didn't feel so small and hot.

Deciding that he needed some air, he turned back to the window and opened it, climbing out. There was no point using the door, he had to go through too many corridors to get outside and Gibbs would probably hear him leave and insist that he accompany him.

He stood up and looked around outside. The cool air felt great after the room he'd just left. He walked around a bit to stretch his legs and to have a look around. The motel didn't look that bad from this angle, apart from the big bins behind all the rooms. He got to the corner and turned around, intending to go back to his room. As he turned, he felt a presence behind him and he froze.

Turning around quickly, he prepared himself to fight, putting all of his training from Gibbs into effect. The blow to his head wasn't entirely unexpected, but it still hurt like hell. The man lunged again and Tony deflected the blow and swung back, hitting the guy in the stomach. The man lunged at him, taking him down in a tackle.

Tony gasped and randomly punched, occasionally feeling them connect. As they continued to fight, the man pulled out a cloth and was trying to put it over Tony's face. Wriggling around to avoid the cloth, he fought harder, knowing that he could kiss his life goodbye if he didn't. Shouting curses at the man, Tony felt himself getting weaker as the chloroform began having its effect on him. It was a losing battle, and they both knew it.

Punching out again, Tony clasped the knife in his belt and plunged it into the man. The guy gasped and clutched his side, rolling off of Tony. Seeing his opportunity, Tony got up and staggered towards the motel. Not looking back, Tony went faster, knowing this was his only chance at escape. As he got to his room, he ducked and fell through the window.

As he got his breath back, he called for Kate and Gibbs. He heard them moving in the next room before his door quickly opened to reveal Kate and Gibbs. Tony was pleased to note they both had their guns out.

"Tony!" Kate exclaimed, quickly going to his side

"What happened?" Gibbs barked, holstering his weapon as he approached

"Not my blood," Tony replied, feeling himself go light-headed and knew he was about to lose consciousness, "Was attacked, outside…"

Gibbs watched his agent lose consciousness. Taking his gun out again, he climbed out of the window and looked around the yard for another person. But nobody was to be seen…

* * *

That's it for chapter 13!...Hope you liked it! Please review! Tell me what you think...Hopefully you shouldn't have too long before the next chapter is posted... 


	14. Chapter 14

**Sinister Intentions**

AN: Thankyou for the reviews! They make warm and fuzzy :-D

Also a humangous thankyou to Kate for her help and great work!

* * *

Tony woke up, feeling groggy and nauseous. Slowly opening his eyes, he frowned as he took in his surroundings. He didn't remember what had happened and couldn't remember how he got to hospital. Groaning, he closed his eyes and shifted in the bed.

"DiNozzo! You awake yet?" Gibbs voice came

Tony opened his eyes to find Gibbs leaning against the doorframe of the room with a coffee in his hand. "Boss?" Tony croaked

Gibbs pushed himself off the doorframe and sat in the chair by his bed, "Kate's been worried about you,"

"Boss, what happened?" Tony asked

Gibbs frowned, "I was hoping you could tell me that. What do you remember?"

Tony groaned and rubbed at his eyes, "Ah, having dinner in that restaurant place with you guys," he sighed and looked around the room, "Going to that cheap motel and getting a room…" squinting at the ceiling in concentration, he shook his head

Gibbs grunted, "You were attacked…"

Tony sat up straighter, "Yeah…there was a blackout. I left the room to get some fresh air and…" he paused and looked at Gibbs, sitting up straighter, "That guy, he attacked me, we fought and … he was going to kill me! He tried to knock me out!…"

"Tony, calm down, you got out of it," Gibbs tried to assure his agent

Tony took a deep breath, "There was nobody else around, he could have killed me…"

"What were you doing out there in the first place?" Gibbs asked

Tony took a shaky breath and looked around the room, "I got scared…I…I kept hearing these strange noises and…"

"What kinda noises?" Gibbs asked

"Tapping at the door," Tony replied

"Hey Tony," Kate said as she came into the room, bearing coffees, one in each hand

"Hey, Kate," Tony replied, then gave her a small grin, "So I heard you were worried about me,"

"Not a chance in hell," Kate replied with a smirk, handing a coffee to Gibbs, and the other to Tony

"Where's yours?" Gibbs asked her, nodding his head in thanks

"Didn't really feel like one," Kate responded

Gibbs grunted and turned back to Tony, "Did you get a look at your attacker?"

Tony thought about it for a while, "No, don't think so,"

"You don't think so, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked

Tony sighed, "I didn't get a look at him, boss. But I managed to get his blood all over me, should be able to get a match…hopefully,"

Gibbs and Kate exchanged a glance and looked back at Tony worriedly

"What?" Tony asked

"The Feds came round earlier. They wanted to question you, but…" Kate explained

"They think you went looking for trouble, got out of your room looking for somebody to be your next victim. They figure you wanted to keep up with your MO, be consistent with the case you worked in Baltimore," Gibbs interrupted

"Boss, I didn't. I swear on my life, that's not what…" Tony protested

"Then why did you leave the room?! Why did you give them a chance to take you down?! You knew they were just looking for it!" Gibbs exclaimed

"Boss, I …" Tony defended himself

"Tony, you're looking at a life sentence! If not, capitol punishment!" Gibbs interrupted, "They are going to nail you for this! You understand that?! What the hell were you doing out there?! You shouldn't have left that goddamn room without one of us with you!"

"I was feeling claustrophobic! I had to get out of …!" Tony shouted at him

"Then why didn't you tell us?!" Gibbs shouted back

"I didn't think about it, okay?! I made a mistake, Gibbs! I was stressed! And I wasn't thinking straight!" Tony shouted

"You weren't thinking at all!" Gibbs retorted

"That's what happens when you're scared Gibbs! But you wouldn't know about that, would you?! You've probably never been afraid in your life! You don't let yourself have those cowardly moments of weakness! But I do! I'm human! I was scared in there! My heart felt like it was going to rip out of my body because it was beating so fast! And I could barely breathe! So forgive me if that made me do something stupid!" Tony responded, tears rolling down his face

"And you think that explains you stabbing someone?!" Gibbs asked

"He attacked me!!" Tony yelled

"Gibbs, out!" Kate exclaimed, pointing at the door

Gibbs narrowed his eyes at Tony, before looking back at Kate and storming out of the room

"_He_ attacked _me_," Tony exclaimed to Kate, "And _I'm_ on the chopping block? You'd think that the fact that he shoved a chloroform soaked rag into my face would cut me some slack. Or at least make them think that _I_ was the victim here. I mean don't they think it's weird that he even had that rag? Or do they think that everybody just happens to carry them around?"

"Tony, we'll get to the bottom of this," Kate responded

Tony sniffled and wiped at his eyes, "Does Gibbs really think that I did this?"

Kate sighed and sat on the side of his bed, taking his hand in hers, "No, he doesn't. He's just pissed that he almost lost one of his agent's today, and he feels like he failed you,"

Tony frowned and looked into Kate's eyes, "Strange, I could've sworn that he hates me,"

Kate smiled, "We both know how he is with emotions,"

"Yeah," Tony agreed with a sigh

"You should've seen him confront the feds," Kate told him, "He wouldn't even let them in to see you. Fornell was pissed that we were _interfering _with his investigation and threatened to arrest us for impeding the investigation, but Gibbs didn't back down. He's getting copies of everything they have and is making sure that they cover everything. He won't give up on you, he won't back down without a fight,"

"Loyal as a Saint Bernard," a remark came from the door

Kate turned around to see Gibbs standing in the doorframe, "You cooled down yet?"

"No," Gibbs replied, then turned around before looking back at her and walking into the room, "But I found some strays…"

Fornell and Sacks walked through the door behind Gibbs. "Agent Dinatzo," Fornell greeted him

Tony plastered a smile on his face, "Fornell, what a pleasant surprise,"

"Agent Gibbs, Todd, you can leave now," Fornell said, turning to Gibbs and Kate

"We're not going anywhere," Gibbs replied, "We're here for DiNozzo and we _are_ staying for this interrogation,"

Tony briefly looked at Gibbs, finding it difficult to keep the surprise off his face, then looked back at Fornell, "What do you want, Fornell?"

Fornell pulled out his notepad, "What are you doing in Baltimore?"

"Came to see a friend, she had a baby a while ago," Tony replied

"Why did you decide to come over now?" Fornell asked

"Didn't have time before, my boss kinda works us hard," Tony responded, shooting Gibbs a sly glance. Gibbs gave a small grin before suppressing it again, "And before you ask, no, I don't have a rock-solid alibi for when those detectives were killed,"

Fornell frowned, "How did you know about that, Agent Dinatzo?"

Tony grated his teeth, "It's 'DiN_ozzo_' and I was _informed_ about that when the local cops arrested me and decided to kick me around a bit, and I don't use that term loosely,"

"How did you get on with the detectives in question?" Fornell asked

"I didn't like them," Tony replied, "I think it was a mutual thing, they stole my clothes when I was in the shower, I …" Tony paused, making a point of thinking about it, then huffed, "…And I did nothing. I'm sure that relationship was destined to go somewhere, I knew it from the beginning…kind of, a gut feeling,"

"They didn't like you," Sacks stated

"_That_ is the understatement of the year," Tony replied, making no attempt to elaborate

"Tell us about what happened last night," Fornell asked

Tony sighed, rubbing a hand over his face, "I got, um, uncomfortable in my room after the blackout and decided I needed some air. I went for a short walk and was attacked by some guy at the outer edge of the motel. We fought for a while, he pulled out a cloth which I assumed was doused in chloroform once I got a whiff of it. As I started blacking out, I pulled out my knife and…" Tony took a deep breath, "I took advantage of the situation and ran back to the room, I managed to call Gibbs and Kate before I passed out,"

"Where's your knife now?" Sacks asked

"Ah, probably where I left it," Tony stated, "Sticking out of the guy I …" Tony looked between the people in the room, "He's still out there… ?"

"When I looked outside, there was nobody around, Tony," Gibbs told him

"He's gonna come after me, boss," Tony said, "He's probably the same guy who killed the others… And I was his fourth victim, only I got away, he's gonna try again,"

"I'm inclined to agree with him, Tobias," Gibbs stated

"Of course you are, Jethro, you're his boss," Fornell replied, "But until we know what happened out - "

"Keep him under protection anyway, I'm not having one of my people killed because the FBI - " Gibbs interrupted

"Put it like this, Jethro, we're not leaving your boy alone. Whether it be for his protection or the wider public's…" Fornell interrupted, leaving his sentence hanging

* * *

THat's it for chapter 14! ...Hope you liked it! Please review! Tell me what you think... 


	15. Chapter 15

**Sinister Intentions**

AN: THankyou all for the reviews! They're great, they keep me inspired :)

Also a huge thankyou to Kate for her fantastic help and support

Because I haven't been updating a lot lately, and because this chapter is doesn't really go anywhere, I decided to post the next chapter as well - which is kinda short, but has more action in it. Hope you like it! Enjoy..!

* * *

"McGee!!!" Abby yelled, jumping up and down before running around the desk to the futon where McGee was sleeping, "McGee! Wake up!"

"I'm awake," McGee gasped, rapidly sitting up as he tried to figure out what the source of the emergency was.

"I found it!" Abby shouted, grasping his hands and pulling him to his feet

McGee frowned, "Found what? And could you stop shouting?"

"But McGee, this is it! This is what we need," Abby replied excitedly, pulling him around the bench to the monitor she'd been using

McGee yawned and rubbed his eyes as Abby released his hand, then squinted at the screen, "What is what you need? And for what?"

Abby frowned at him, then smacked him over the back of the head.

"Ow!" McGee complained, rubbing his head, "What was that for?"

"To wake you up. Now, pay attention," Abby replied, clicking the mouse

McGee watched the screen for a while, then looked back at Abby, "Yeah, it's the security tape,"

"And?" Abby prompted

"And what?" McGee asked, looking confused

"I knew there was something hinky with it when we first looked at it, but I didn't figure it out until just now," Abby replied, "Watch the clock,"

McGee frowned, but watched the tape again. Suddenly he raised his eyebrows and opened his mouth.

Abby smiled, "McGee, you know what this means?"

"We have to tell Gibbs," McGee replied

"What? No 'good work there Abby, my dear, I think I'm going to have to buy you lunch'?" Abby asked, putting on a voice

McGee smiled and reached for the phone, but it rang before he'd picked it up. Frowning he gave it to Abby.

"Speak, you are on the air," Abby answered

"Abs, you got something for me?" Gibbs asked on the other end

Abby smiled, putting him on the speaker phone, "I'm beginning to think you telepathic, boss-man,"

"Well, if I was, I wouldn't have to make this call," Gibbs replied

Abby frowned slightly, wondering what had put him in a bad mood, "Point taken. Okay, we looked over the security tapes from the night Drew was killed and found something really hinky,"

"What was it?" Gibbs asked when Abby didn't explain

"In the top right hand corner of the tape, you can see the clock. After fifteen minutes, the big hand flicks back then repeats over and over and over…" Abby replied

"Somebody recorded fifteen minutes of time and had the tape on a continuous loop?" Gibbs asked

"Yep, they replayed the fifteen minutes that Tony wasn't in the office for an hour and a half. He now has an alibi!" Abby exclaimed excitedly

They heard Gibbs sigh into the phone, "No, it doesn't. It just means somebody tampered with the tapes. It doesn't prove that he was there,"

"But - " Abby protested

"What about other tapes? Do you have anything that indicates he didn't leave the building?" Gibbs asked

"Well the tapes in the garage show his car being there all night," McGee supplied

"None of the other tapes show anything," Abby replied

"Check who the security guard was and question them. Then go through taxi records," Gibbs told them, "Oh, and ask Sandra if he came in,"

"Who's Sandra?" McGee asked

"One of the coffee ladies at the nearest coffee store," Gibbs replied, "They're open all night,"

"Trust you to know that, Gibbs," Abby commented

Suddenly McGee's eyes lit up, "What about the bank down the road?"

"What about it?" Gibbs asked

"They may have had their cameras pointed in this direction, they would've gotten anybody who left the office, or at least, anybody walking in the direction of the bar where the murder took place," McGee explained

"Good thinking, McGee," Gibbs replied, "Check it out as soon as they open,"

* * *

Gibbs turned back to watch as Tony signed himself out of the hospital, then made another call.

"Gibbs, I thought I might be hearing from you soon," the voice on the other end of the phone said

"Director, DiNozzo was attacked last night at a hotel we stopped at. Due to the circumstances it happened in, the FBI believe he was attacked out of self-defense and are reluctant to let him go. They want him under supervision until they can get this mess sorted out," Gibbs explained, "Fornell has agreed to leave Tony in my custody, instead of behind bars,"

"Ok, where are you now?" Morrow asked, "Still in Baltimore?"

"Yes sir, DiNozzo is being discharged from hospital as we speak. Kate has organized our flight back home; I believe we leave in two hours," Gibbs replied

"I see, and Petty Officer Brent's ex-wife?" Morrow asked

"Sir?" Gibbs asked

"The case that had you going to Baltimore in the first place," Morrow replied

Gibbs silently swore, having completely forgotten about his 'official' reason for coming to Baltimore, "I'll get Kate to rebook our flight,"

"Jethro," Morrow paused, "I'm going to take your team off that case and give it to another team. I'm going to contact the FBI and see that your team is given a copy of everything they find,"

"Thank-you, sir," Gibbs replied, hanging up

Gibbs put the cell in his pocket and looked up in time to see Tony walking towards him with a big grin on his face.

In response to his unasked question, Tony held up a small piece of paper with writing on it, stating, "The attractive, young nurse that was looking after me gave me her phone number,"

Gibbs grinned, "I'm sure you told her that you don't live in Baltimore,"

Tony pocketed the paper, "She'll figure it out. So where to now, boss?"

"The cafeteria. Kate's gonna meet us there. She's got our bags in the rental car, which we need to return, then we're off to the airport," Gibbs replied, starting to walk to the elevator

"We're going home already?" Tony asked, with a hint of disappointment in his voice

"You were planning on staying in Baltimore, Tony?" Gibbs asked

"No, boss. Not at all, I'll be happy to leave this place ASAP," Tony replied

Gibbs narrowed his eyes as he held open the elevator door for Tony, "Okay, spill,"

"There's nothing to say. I just thought we'd be sticking around for a bit longer, is all," Tony replied

Gibbs turned to Tony as the doors closed and watched him, until Tony gave in, "You know that friend I told you about? The one I came to see, who had the baby a few months ago? I was hoping to see her again, maybe even explain what happened. The cops just took me away, arrested me in front of her, then left with me. Hell, I didn't even get even get to see the baby,"

"We don't have time," Gibbs sighed, then patted Tony's shoulder, "Maybe next time,"

"Yeah, maybe," Tony replied

* * *

That's it for chapter 15! ...Hope you liked it! Please review! 


	16. Chapter 16

**Sinister Intentions**

AN: A huge thankyou to Kate for all her fantastic work and help!

This chapter is slightly shorter than the others, but hopefully the next one should make up for it

* * *

McGee watched the plane land, wondering why it had been delayed for so long. Abby had reluctantly agreed to stay at the office and check security tapes and other evidence. She hadn't been very happy that McGee was gonna meet the rest of the team at the airport, and had made it a point to let McGee know at any and every possible chance she got.

Taking a sip of his caf-Pow!, he cursed again at how late the plane had been, he'd had to throw out the first lot of coffees he'd bought because they'd gone cold. He knew for a fact that as soon as Gibbs caught up with him, the first thing he'd want was a coffee, a _hot_ coffee.

The terminal began filling with people as the flight un-boarded, and eventually he spotted Kate. Grinning, he made his way towards her and eventually saw Tony and Gibbs, the latter looking very pissed off.

As soon as Gibbs saw McGee, he smiled and took a coffee – Tony's coffee.

"Ah, boss, that's…" the words died in his throat as Gibbs realised and silently passed the coffee to Tony, picking one of the other coffees off the tray

McGee wordlessly passed the remaining coffee to Kate, who declined

"So, McGee, what do you have for me?" Gibbs asked, taking Kate's coffee, not wanting for it to go to waste

"Abby's going over the bank's security tapes and the other evidence that the FBI sent us…" McGee began as he walked with them

"The Feds sent us evidence?" Tony asked

"Yeah, Morrow made them agree to share info with us," Gibbs replied

"Ah, yeah, and we sent them our security tape, but we haven't received a reply," McGee continued

"Have you found anything yet?" Gibbs asked

"Not yet, boss. But we've almost finished compiling the list of people who may have grudges against Tony and Andrew" McGee replied

As the team got their bags off the carousel, they walked outside to the cars. They decided that Kate was going back to the office with McGee, whilst Tony and Gibbs were going to Tony's place to pick up some clothes for the next few weeks whilst Tony would be living with them.

"Kate, I want you to help McGee finish compiling the list, then start chasing them down, see what leads you can find. McGee, once the list is done, help Abby run the rest of the evidence," Gibbs said as the got to McGee's car.

"On it, boss," McGee replied

"Okay. Place nice now, Jethro" Kate responded

Gibbs grinned, "Always do,"

"That's debatable. Cya later," Kate replied

After the car pulled away, Gibbs led the way to his car, "You got much to pick up?"

"Shouldn't be," Tony replied, "So, you and Kate made up again?"

Gibbs turned to Tony with raised eyebrows, "What makes you think we were fighting?"

Tony smirked as they reached the car, "I can just tell, and besides, the day before I went to Baltimore, Kate was _pissed_ at you,"

Gibbs got in the car, "We _always_ make up,"

"Yeah, I know, she always tells me," Tony replied

Gibbs grumbled and tore out of the car-park. They rode in silence for a while, before Tony broke it again by playing with the radio. When the high pitched shrill came out of the speaker, Tony shook his head.

"Gibbs, I'm gonna get you a new radio, or at least fix this one," Tony announced

"There's nothing wrong with this one," Gibbs declared

"Boss, it doesn't work. It's not supposed to emit a high pitched screaming sound" Tony replied

"Eh, I never listen to it anyway," Gibbs replied

"Yeah, well other people do," Tony responded, "It's time you got a new one,"

"Haven't had it that long," Gibbs told him

"A year and a bit is long enough," Tony declared as they pulled up at Tony's house

"I like the sound of the engine," Gibbs commented

Tony rolled his eyes, "This weekend, boss, I'm gonna fix it,"

Gibbs grinned and got out of the car, "Make it quick, DiNozzo,"

"Sure thing, boss," Tony replied, getting out of the car. Whistling, he checked his letterbox and strolled towards his house, flicking through his mail.

Gibbs followed at a distance, not wanting Tony to feel cramped. Tony got to his door and patted down his pockets, looking for his keys. Grunting at himself, he pulled out a set of keys, which belonged to his locker at work.

"Hey boss!" Tony called, jogging off his porch, "You seen my…?"

Before Tony could finish his sentence, there was a flash as his house blew up. The force of the explosion threw Tony several meters across the front of his lawn, knocking him out.

* * *

That's it for chapter 16! ...Hope you like it! Please review! Tell me what you think! 


	17. Chapter 17

**Sinister Intentions**

AN: Thankyou all for the reviews! They're great!

Also a huge thankyou to Kate for all her help and fantastic work!

* * *

Kate frowned as she stared at her monitor. It was difficult trying to get things done when the office was so hot and sticky. The air conditioner had broken down again, making the office unlivable and impossible to do work in. Looking at the clock, she noticed that she'd been reading the same paragraph for half an hour.

As she finally got her attention back to the monitor, her phone rang.

"Agent Todd," she answered

"Kate. It's Gibbs, get people to Tony's house now!" Gibbs shouted on the other end of the phone

"Gibbs, why are you shouting? What's wrong? What happened?" Kate asked

"I'm not shouting. Get…" she heard Gibbs cough, "Tony's house,"

"I don't understand, what's going on?" Kate asked again

"There was an explosion," Gibbs replied, "Get people here now,"

"Ok, on it," Kate's reply came, "Are you hurt? What people do you want? Ambulance?"

"Yes! Now, Kate!" Gibbs replied, hanging up

* * *

Gibbs coughed and looked around, feeling a little dazed. The explosion had thrown him to the ground as well, however unlike Tony; he'd managed to stay conscious. Rolling onto his side, he saw Tony face-down on the ground, a piece of shrapnel cutting into his arm. Crawling across to his agent, he ignored the pain cursing through his body and pulled at his agent.

He dragged him until he was leaning against the car, holding Tony against his chest. Gibbs pulled out his cell and his gun, preparing himself to shoot anybody who came within shooting range. Blinking through the blood that ran into his eye, he hit speed dial one and listened to the dial tone.

"Todd," came the faint reply

"Kate. It's Gibbs, get people to Tony's house now!" Gibbs told her

"Gibbs, why …shouting? What…? What happened?" Kate asked

"I'm not shouting. Get…" Gibbs stopped to cough, "Tony's house,"

"Don't understand, what's going…?" Kate asked again

"There was an explosion," Gibbs replied, "Get people here now,"

"Ok,…" Kate's reply came, "You hurt? …People you want?"

"Yes! Now, Kate!" Gibbs replied, hanging up and throwing the cell down

With his now free hand, he wiped the blood away that was obscuring his vision and looked around the yard at the burning house. He'd helped Tony and Drew find this place. He'd even helped paint it, having fun filled days with Tony, Drew and Kate – they'd often ended up having fights with the paint. He remembered them having to drop what they were doing because they received a case. They'd managed to have a quick shower, but the majority of paint had stayed on them.

He was pulled out of his reverie when an old lady walked into his line of site, walking her dog. Coughing, he pointed his gun at the lady "Don't come any closer. Go around the vehicle,"

The lady stared at him, her eyes going wide as she put her hands above her head, dropping the dog's leash, "Don't hurt…, I'm won't ….the police, just please …hurt me,"

Gibbs grunted, catching the dog's leash before it ran away. He hadn't meant to scare the woman; he was just suspicious of everybody at the moment. He handed the leash to the woman.

The woman looked at him confusedly, but greatly took control of her dog and almost ran past him.

Looking back at the house, he felt his head go heavy and the house began rotating and moving. Swallowing against his dry throat, he clutched at Tony and stared at a point on the grass as he tried to ground himself.

As the ground leveled itself out he heard sirens in the distance and breathed a sigh of relief to himself. He could finally relax; he put his head against the car and waited for the backup. Then the sirens stopped. Gibbs opened his eyes and took his head off the car. He frowned, he'd thought those sirens were coming here, but when they stopped, they still sounded miles away.

Movement caught the corner of his eye and he turned to look properly. He saw a young man come around the car, holding his gun out.

"Freeze!" Gibbs exclaimed, pointing his gun at him

The young man turned around, pointing the gun at him now, "Put…weapon down…!"

Gibbs frowned, "No, not till you do," he replied, cocking his gun

"Sir, no…to shout. Just …your weapon…and we can…about this," the young man responded

Gibbs' frown deepened. He could understand how he'd scared the old woman into loosing her voice, but this guy… "Who are you?"

"I could…question," the man replied, "I'm…Hay, I'm with the…department,"

Gibbs blinked and shook his head, "Hay who? And I don't care what department you're with, put the goddamn weapon down,"

The man frowned, then shot a glance past Gibbs before looking back at him. Gibbs frowned; quickly shooting a glance over his shoulder, then saw another young man. "You! Over here now!" Gibbs shouted, waving the gun at the new guy

The man put his hands in the air and slowly made his way to his friend, whispering something in his ear, which the other guy gave a small nod to.

Gibbs frowned, "Who are you?"

"I'm detective … I'm also with… police department," the new guy said

Gibbs lowered his gun a fraction, frowning again, then looked at Hay, "You're cops?"

Hay nodded, "I'm…take out…badge," he slowly took a badge off his hip and threw it at Gibbs, his partner doing the same

Gibbs picked them up with his free hand and quickly looked at them, before putting down his gun, "Coulda just told me that," he said as he threw their badges back

The cops exchanged a glance; then looked over the roof of the car. Hay looked back at Gibbs, "Paramedics…arrived, they'll…over, ok?"

Gibbs frowned and nodded anyway. Soon after, sure enough two paramedics came around the side of the car. One of them began talking into their radio as the other approached him.

"…Trish, how are…?" she asked

Gibbs' frown deepened, and he wiped blood out of his eyes again, "Does everybody in this area have speech impediments?"

Trish frowned, putting a bandage around his arm to take his blood pressure, "What…mean?"

Gibbs shook his head, "Or maybe it's just a cold…"

"Ok, I'm just…check your… ok?" Trish asked

Gibbs blinked, "Check my what?"

"…friend," Trish said

Gibbs watched Trish take Tony's pulse and check him over. After a while, the other EMT approached Trish and spoke to her.

"Other ambulance…minutes," he said, to which Trish nodded, "How…?"

"….hearing…also he…" Trish responded

"There's nothing wrong with my hearing!" Gibbs shouted, holding onto Tony again as the world began spinning

"…ok? You…." Trish said to him, grabbing his arm

"I'm just feeling dizzy," Gibbs responded, trying to blink away the fuzziness

The other EMT took something out of his bag and showed it to Gibbs – a needle – then said, "I'm…IV, it'll…"

Gibbs frowned, "Do you know what you're doing?"

The man smiled, then said something he couldn't catch. He watched as the man swabbed his arm, before putting the needle in it. As he looked up, he saw another two paramedics looking Tony over.

"When'd they get here?" Gibbs asked, surprised to see them there

"…hear sirens…?" the man asked

Gibbs thought about it for a second before shaking his head, "They had them on?"

The man exchanged a worried glance with his partner, then turned back to him, "Feel better?"

"Nope," Gibbs replied as he the EMT began bouncing around, "Think I'm gonna be sick,"

The man nodded "Well…"

Gibbs leant away from Tony and threw up his lunch. He vaguely registered somebody holding him back so he didn't fall into it, before he threw up again and lost consciousness.

* * *

That's it for chapter 17! ...Hope you liked it and it wasn't too confusing! Please review! Tell me what you thought! hopefully i'll be able to update again within the next few days 


	18. Chapter 18

**Sinister Intentions**

AN; Thankyou all for the reviews! I really appreciate them!

Also a huge thankyou to Kate for all her help and hard work!

This chapter is a bit short, but hopefully the next one should be longer

* * *

Kate paced around the waiting room, waiting for Ducky to come back through the double doors and give them news. She'd been sick with worry since she'd heard what'd happened.

"Kate!" somebody exclaimed

Kate turned towards the sound and to see Abby half running towards her with McGee at her heals, "Sorry we're late, we got caught up, how are they doing?"

"I don't know. Ducky has gone in to see if he can find out what's going on, but…" Kate left the sentence hanging

Abby gave her a hug, "They are going to get through this, they're strong men,"

"I know, I'm just scared that…" Kate said

"Hey, don't think like that. You're not allowed to, it might jinx them or something," Abby interrupted, "You have to think positive thoughts,"

"Abby," Kate protested

"Caitlin, Abigail, Timothy," they heard a voice, followed by a swoosh of doors

As one they turned to the doors as Ducky came out.

"Ducky?" Kate asked

Ducky sighed, "They should be okay. There may be a few complications, but nothing that won't sort itself out,"

"What kind of complications?" Abby asked

"Well, young Anthony punctured a lung and has done some severe damage to his right arm and he may not be able to use it properly in the future. Jethro, his hearing, the deafness he was experiencing may be permanent," Ducky told them

"Ducky?" Abby asked

"May be, Abigail. That is worst case scenario, chances are that everything will be fine, but we have to prepare ourselves," Ducky responded

"Can we see them?" Kate asked

"Of course, this way. We can't stay for long though, just a quick visit," Ducky responded, leading them down a corridor

* * *

Tony woke up feeling the heaviness in his head. Groaning, he held his head in his hands, wishing the pain would go away.

"Tony?" somebody asked

Opening his eyes, Tony looked around the room to find McGee sitting beside his bed

"Probie," Tony rasped, "Water,"

McGee got up, picking up a cup and giving him a straw. Tony drank as much as he could, feeling bloated before too long, and lay back.

"What happened?" Tony asked, rubbing his face

"You were in an explosion, Tony. You're house blew up," McGee replied

Tony groaned, "I don't remember,"

"That's ok. I'd be surprised if you did, especially given the drugs you're on," McGee said

"I hate hospitals," Tony groaned into his pillow

"Me too," McGee responded

Tony closed his eyes, "Good to know," then he sat up, "Gibbs?!"

"It's ok, Tony. He's next door," McGee moved to comfort him

"He ok?" Tony asked

McGee sighed, "I was talking with the cops who got to the scene first. He didn't look good and wasn't hearing everything they said, he was also shouting whenever he spoke,"

"They think he lost his hearing?" Tony asked

"They don't know if it's temporary or permanent. He also had a pretty severe concussion when he came in, and broke a few ribs. But then, you broke more," McGee explained

"That'd explain why my chest hurts," Tony responded

"That could be because of your punctured lung," McGee told him

Tony groaned, "Ah, just kill me now,"

"I could get the nurse," McGee suggested

Tony closed his eyes, "Nah, too tired,"

"She's really hot," McGee told him

"Later, probie," he muttered, falling asleep

* * *

Gibbs woke up suddenly, sitting bolt upright. He was breathing hard and he felt the sweat plastered over his face. Suddenly he felt somebody's hands on his shoulders, pushing him back.

"Ah, let go," Gibbs groaned, fumbling in the darkness

Suddenly somebody switched on the light, momentarily blinding him. When his eyes adjusted to the light, he found himself in a hospital room. He looked around and found Kate standing at his bedside, watching him. She opened her mouth and said something – he was sure she said something; he could see her lips moving – only, he had no idea what she said.

"What?" he asked

Kate looked around and put her finger to her lips, saying something else.

"Kate, I don't understand, speak up," he told her

Kate held up one finger and went to the other side of the room and came back holding a pen and some paper. She quickly wrote a message and passed it to him.

_The doctors said this might happen. They said the explosion may have damaged your eardrums…they said we'd have to wait for you to wake up before they knew if it was permanent or temporary_

Gibbs stared at the note in disbelief, "But I heard everything when…"

Kate quietened him by putting her finger over his lips, then wrote him another message.

_You're shouting, Jethro, if you want to talk, you have to try to be quieter_

Gibbs nodded and licked his lips, his eyes searching the room to find, he didn't know what. But he did see Abby at the door. He smiled, "Abby could interpret for us…"

He saw Abby smile and come in, saying something to Kate, who nodded. Returning his attention to Abby, she signed, _Hey, boss man, we've been worried. What happened?_

_An explosion_ Gibbs signed back, watching Abby translate

_You don't say…Anyway, Kate wants to know if you're okay_

_Never been better,_ Gibbs replied,_ How's Tony? He didn't look good_

_He's done some bad damage to his arm, a few broken ribs, punctured lung, concussion, that sort of thing_

_Anything serious?_ Gibbs asked

_Only to his arm. Time will tell how well it heals. As for you, my silver haired fox, obviously the temporary deafness, concussion, broken ribs_

Gibbs nodded, _How are you guys?_

_Okay, Kate's been a wreck. You've been out for two and a half days. Tony woke up yesterday briefly, _Abby responded

Gibbs nodded again and suppressed a yawn, _Caught our killer yet?_

Abby smiled, _Well, we have an idea who it might be, but I'll tell you when you wake up next, I doubt you'll remember this; you're on some pretty heavy drugs_

Gibbs nodded and looked at Kate, "I'm tired, I want…"

Kate silenced him again by putting her finger over his lips and nodding at him. Gibbs smiled and closed his eyes, drifting off to sleep

* * *

That's it for chapter 18!...Hope you liked it! Please review! Tell me what you think! 


	19. Chapter 19

**Sinister Intentions**

AN: Thankyou all for the reviews! I really appreciate them!

Also a huge thankyou to Kate for her help and support!

Sorry about the huge delay, I got a bit lost with where I'm taking this fic... updates may be a little slower, but I'm trying, I don't wanna post something just to post something, I still wanna keep it going nicely... but anyway, on with the story...

* * *

When Tony woke up next, he felt another presence in the room. Keeping his breathing even, or as close to normal as he could make it, he squinted open his eyes to gauge the danger.

"Ah, good afternoon, Anthony," Ducky's voice sounded from beside him, "I'm glad to see you're awake again,"

Tony breathed out deeply in relief and croaked, "God Ducky, I thought you'd come to kill me,"

Ducky chuckled, "No, I wouldn't do that, my son. Would you like some water?"

Tony nodded and gratefully accepted the cup that Ducky handed him, "When can I get outta here?"

Ducky smiled, "You know, I don't think you realise just how similar you and Jethro are. The last time I spoke to him, he asked me exactly the same thing,"

Tony sat up and immediately felt panic rise within him when he thought of Gibbs, "How is he? Is he okay? I didn't – "

"Anthony," Ducky interrupted, realizing that Tony probably didn't remember being told about Gibbs' condition, "Jethro is doing well. You were closer to the blast than he was. Gibbs has a few injuries, but the doctor's are confident that most will heal with time,"

Tony relaxed a bit before frowning, "What do you mean 'most'?"

Ducky sighed, "We're not sure, Anthony. One thing you may have noticed about doctors is that they never like to tell somebody the best case scenario, especially when they are unknowns. They won't tell you in an absolute certainty that everything will go well,"

"What are you trying to say, Ducky?" Tony asked, feeling fear grip him once again, "Gibbs isn't dying, is he?"

"Dear lord, no, Tony. Do you remember being told that Gibbs is experiencing deafness, which may or may not be temporary?" Ducky asked quietly

Tony narrowed his eyes at Ducky, then frowned, "But…hangon, I was closer to the source of the explosion, why aren't I experiencing deafness?"

"Ah, the million dollar question. To be honest, we're not sure," Ducky replied, "Anthony, it might be in your best interests to see Jethro for yourself. I understand that you're anxious about the situation, and Jethro has been asking about you as well,"

"Can I go now?" Tony replied, still not convinced that Gibbs was okay

"Not now, maybe later today, or tomorrow," Ducky replied

"Okay," Tony reluctantly agreed

The two men lapsed into silence for a while, until Tony thought of something, "Ducky, what happened with the FBI? Do they still think I'm a serial killer?"

Ducky chuckled, "They are rather confused by the events. Although, I think Timothy and Abigail spelled out what happened for them. From what I heard, Gibbs would have been very proud of them,"

Tony managed a small laugh, then sobered, "How's Kate? I mean, I know she's a tough little cookie, but…"

"She's coping with it as best as she can at the moment. I've made sure to keep an eye on her," Ducky replied

Tony stifled a yawn, "Good to hear that you're taking good care of everybody, Duck,"

"Indeed. And I believe it is time you got some more shut-eye," Ducky replied, watching as Tony fought to keep awake

Tony closed his eyes, "Yeah, I never got enough sleep anyway," then Tony suddenly opened his eyes, with a grin at Ducky, "Hangon, Probie said something about a hot nurse…?"

* * *

Gibbs woke up suddenly, sitting bolt up-right in his bed. He wasn't sure what had woken him, but it had given him a fright. He looked around the room, quickly registering that he was in a hospital.

Sighing, he lay back on the bed. He hated waking up disoriented, and it seemed to happen more than a lot lately. That was probably because he was in a hospital. He hated hospitals. Despised them.

He couldn't work out where his hatred for them had originated, but he didn't care much either. As far as he was concerned; he hated them, always had, always would.

Rolling to his side, he looked out the door to the room. There didn't seem to be many people around, but he was more than happy about that, this way, they made less noise.

Gibbs quietly grumbled to himself over his choice of words. He didn't want to even think about how he couldn't hear anything, mainly because it scared the shit out of him. And he didn't want to appear to be scared.

Trying to keep his mind off that particular topic, he got to wondering how Tony was doing. He still couldn't get the picture out of his mind, where he was holding Tony's limp body close to his own, the younger man's body all bloody from where he'd been hit with shrapnel.

Gibbs sighed and searched the ceiling for answers. He hated feeling this helpless.

On impulse, Gibbs decided that he was sick of laying around and waiting. He was going to go see Tony.

Set and determined, Gibbs sat up and brought his legs over the side of the mattress. He untangled the net of tubes and wires he was attached to and disconnected a few wires that were connected to machines he couldn't bring with him.

As he disconnected the heart monitoring wire, an alarm bell began sounding in the distance. Gibbs cursed and quickly put it back on again. Grumbling, he squinted at the monitor until he found a way to turn the whole thing off.

Once he thought he was set, he rolled the IV line to the side of the bed and used it to haul himself off the bed. He managed to take two steps before faltering and falling to the ground. He hadn't counted on his lack of balance or strength.

A sharp pain in his chest made him cry out. Clenching his eyes closed, he tried to control the pain he was feeling. After several deep breaths, he slowly opened his eyes. Blinking through the blurriness, he found that blood was slowly seeping through his gown, staining it a dark red.

Gibbs quickly shut his eyes again as nausea threatened to overwhelm him. He felt himself go light-headed and realized he was about to pass out. Gibbs cursed to himself again and vaguely wished he'd kept the call-button close to him, or even kept the heart monitor attached – just until he was up and going…

Gibbs frowned, then finally smiled. Just before he passed out, he remembered an alarm bell sound after disconnecting the heart monitor, and realized his hearing was coming back.

* * *

That's it for chapter 19!...Hope you liked it! Please review! Tell me what you think! 


	20. Chapter 20

**Sinister Intentions**

AN: Thankyou all for the reviews! I really appreciate them!

Also a huge thankyou to Kate for her help and support!

Sorry about the very very very huge delay. I got all caught up with uni and moving house (excuses, excuses...).. anyway, it's holidays now so I'll try to be good and update regularly (fingers crossed) because I really want to get this fic done - I've got heaps of ideas for new fics, but I don't wanna start them yet, otherwise I'll have too many on the go at once and I'll lose track.

Sorry this chapter is so short, still trying to get the wheels rolling...

* * *

Ducky rushed to the hospital, the doctor's words echoing in his ears. After returning from visiting Gibbs and Tony in the hospital, Ducky had returned home to a nice warm shower, with the prospect of catching a few hours sleep before going back to the hospital.

However, before he was able to get to sleep, his phone had rung. His mother had answered…

"_Donald, there is a strange man on the phone, I think he wants our money," Mrs Mallard called up to him_

"_Yes, mother," Ducky replied under his breath as he made his way downstairs, "What is his name?"_

"_I don't know, Donald…" Ducky's mum trailed off, talking about something unrelated, Ducky tuned back in, hearing, "And I really think we should move to Hollywood,"_

_Ducky frowned as he took the phone, wondering what the connection was, "Hello?"_

"_Doctor Mallard?" a voice asked_

"_Yes?" Ducky replied_

"_It's Doctor Luther from the hospital, I'm calling regarding Gibbs' condition," the voice responded_

"_What's happened?" Ducky asked, fearing the worst_

"_I'm afraid to say, he's taken a turn for the worse. He's taken a fall, and has reopened his stitches. Unfortunately he lost quite a lot of blood before someone found him – " Luther replied_

"_What do you mean 'before someone found him'?" Ducky interrupted_

_Ducky heard the doctor sigh, "The nurses were tied up due to a medical emergency in one of the other rooms and nobody was checked up on Gibbs for some time. When the nurse checked in on him, they found him unconscious on the floor in a pool of blood. I have already had words with the nurse responsible and action has been taken," the doctor paused, "Gibbs' stitches have been replaced and the bleeding has stopped. He's currently on the way to x-ray to see if any additional damage was done due to the fall, but we are hopeful that that is not the case,"_

_Ducky sighed with relief, it appeared everything had been taken care of, "Okay, so what's the bad news?"_

_Ducky heard the doctor take a deep breath, "He's slipped into a coma,"_

Stepping into the elevator, Ducky wondered what more could possibly go wrong. Why had Gibbs been found on the floor? What had he been trying to do? Probably go to the toilet, he'd be too stubborn to use the urine containers.

As the doors to the elevator began to close, a hand pulled them back and another person stepped aboard.

"Kate, I believe I told you to go home and get some rest," Ducky chastised the young woman

"Mmm, well I believe you told everybody, and that applies to you too, Ducky," Kate responded, "Besides, I don't think I would've slept anyway,"

"Well, what about food? Have you eaten anything?" Ducky asked

"I don't really feel like eating, haven't for a few days," Kate replied as they stepped off on Gibbs's floor

"Kate, you really need to look after yourself better," Ducky responded, "And how long have you been experiencing sickness in the mornings?"

Kate turned to look at Ducky, in surprise "How did you know that?"

"An educated guess, my dear," Ducky responded, "Various things that you've mentioned or I've noticed, such as avoiding caffeine and on a few occasions, an alcoholic beverage. It'd be about this time that you were likely to develop morning sickness,"

"Huh, figures that you would know before me," Kate replied

"What do you mean, Caitlin?" Ducky asked

"Well, I haven't taken the pregnancy test yet, I just had…an inkling," Kate responded

"I believe Jethro calls them 'gut feelings'" Ducky replied with a chuckle

Kate smiled, "Yeah, well I don't get 'gut feelings', I get 'inklings'" Kate told him

"I see," Ducky responded, "Does Jethro know about this particular inkling?"

"No, I haven't told him yet. But when I do, I want to know for sure," Kate said

"Well, when you're ready, I know a great gynecologist, in fact, I know several," Ducky replied

"Thanks, Ducky. I think we might just try and get through this first. I'm sure the last thing Gibbs would want to know is that he'll be a father soon, especially with his hearing," Kate replied

"On the contrary, Caitlin, I believe Jethro will take to it like a duck to water," Ducky responded

"Mmm, we'll see," Kate responded

* * *

That's it for chapter 20! Hope you liked it. I have bit of an idea where this is going, but i'll probably have to go over the notes and stuff i took...anyway, hopefully updates will come sooner now :) ...Please Review! Tell me what i'm doing right, or wrong! Ta :) 


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